Author: Patty Richardson

The heat,unimaginably unbearable
The scorching flames above
The dance of evil all around
Destroying all that you love.

Your house and your belongings
Everything you have worked for
In a matter of minutes, it’s over
The fire marches right thru your door.

The firefighters bravely fighting
The wind and drying brush
QThey push ahead through all the noise
They hear the roar, the fire’s cruel thrust.

Ferociously it moves about
At a speed unknown to man
The planes above drop their loads
Doing the very best they can.

But, it’s not enough to fight the blaze
To fight the furnace deep below
As it thunders across the valley
As it roars and continues to grow.

The fire, pure evil …ravaging
Everything within it’s path
Burning, and destroying
There’s nothing left, all turned to ash.

Though exhausted and weary, the battle continues
The firefighters must find their strength
They know they must gain control of this beast
They will prevail and in the end…they will win.

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Image from Google Images: medicaldaily.com

Grasping at straws
Reaching out for a rope
Losing my grip
Giving up hope.

Don’t know where to turn
Make a left or a right
Losing my bearings
Someone turn on the light.

Can’t find my way
Feeling out of control
Losing direction
Can’t establish a goal.

Running in place
I’m out of step
Can’t get it together
Haven’t found my way, yet.

Blindly I’ll follow
Till I figure it out
My place in this game
What my life’s all about.

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Image from Google Images: highlandtrainingblog.net

A walk in the park
Helps clear your mind
From the constant bombardment
A break from the grind.

Pressing deadlines
Expectations galore
Don’t you ask yourself
What’s it all for?

You try and smell the coffee
The roses are in bloom
But there’s no time to enjoy them
You’re exhausted before noon.

Your name and fancy title
Determining your self worth
The house out in the country
The designer shoes and purse.

Texting and emails
All the graphs and conference calls
The meetings, the deadlines
All the push backs and the stalls.

You’ve got to make the money
You’ve got to stake your claim
But truth is once you’re gone
They’ll forget you came.

Climbing the corporate ladder
All the pressure and the noise
So many expectations
To be one of the boys.

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Image from Google Images: gvsigmini.org

Help me please
I can’t stand up
I feel so weak
I’ve had enough.

My legs are weak
My head is pounding
My heart is racing
My pressures mounting.

I’m on the floor
I think I fell
No one is home
Far as I can tell.

Can’t reach the phone
It’s in my purse
Never felt this bad
It’s getting worse.

Guess it’s time
No one is near
I’m not afraid
No time for fear.

Can’t hold on
I close my eyes
I can’t move
I start to cry.

Letting go
Is not so bad
I’m just so tired
More tired than sad.

Holding on
Takes so much strength
Can’t last forever
It’s got to end.

Just passing through
You’re on your own
You spend some time
Then leave alone.

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Image from Google Images: Lexington County EMS

You’re under arrest
Hands be-hind your back
Handcuffed and charged
For stealing some snacks.

A tray of eclairs
You grab one on a dare
Three witnesses saw you
Confirmed you were there.

You leave the scene
You make your escape
What a crazy idea
Such a careless mistake.

A squad car alerted
With sirens and lights
Stopped on the street
Told, “Get off of that bike!”

Knocked to the ground
You’re tased and you’re beaten
You get knocked around
They don’t need a reason.

Chocolate and cream
The bake goods you liked
Under Interrogation
Now under bright lights.

You make a confession
They impound your bike.
You have no recourse
You value your life.

Five years spent in prison
No way to explain
A lapse in good judgement
A small link in the chain.

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Image from Google Images: Education Under Arrest Tavis Smiley…PBS

Let’s go down to the water
Bring your towel and suntan lotion
Can’t wait to feel the sand
And the waves out in the ocean.

The sun is beating down
A perfect day for fun
Sunbathing and walking
Underneath the warm, bright sun.

Open up a homemade sandwich
Grab yourself a bag of chips
A bottle of tea and a pickle
Taste the salt upon your lips.

There’s nothing like the salty air
And the cool, sweet, salty breeze
Makes you want to spend forever there
Makes you never want to leave.

The seagulls, the sand crabs
The turtles, and the dolphins
The creatures of nature
You don’t see so very often.

The pull and tugs of deadlines
Cast them all away
Enjoy the simple pleasures
Of this perfect summer day.

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Image from Google Images: getdrawings.com

Scattered thunder showers
Raindrops begin to fall
Filling up the puddles
Running down the crumbled walls.

Don’t forget your umbrella
Or those shiny rubber boots
Your raincoat or your hoody
Hope your clothes are waterproof.

The lakes and all the rivers
Slowly start to rise
Too much water in your garden
And the shallow plants will die.

It’s always feast or famine
You have more or you have less
Hard to make predictions
Sometimes better just to guess.

The rain has stopped, the sun is out
Let’s spend the day outside
Let’ go out to the country
Let’s go…. let’s take a ride.

Water slides and waterfalls
A perfect summer day
A hike into the forest
Such a magical getaway.

Why not go skinny dipping?
There’s no one else around
Take off your shoes, your overalls
Just lay them on the ground.

The water cold….. refreshing
Clear and deep … it’s so pristine
You could see right to the bottom
It was amazingly …. so clean.

A frog nearby kept watch on us
Not sure that we belonged
Sitting on a nearby log
Hoping soon we would be gone.

Time to go, it’s getting late
The sun is going down
Time to start the drive toward home
Make our way on back to town.

What started as a rainy day
Turned into an adventure
With lots of laughs and lots of fun
A memory to treasure.

You sit and drink your coffee
Watch the birds thru the screen door
You can hear them chirping loudly
Your feet cold… upon the floor.

Your husband brings your slippers
Sets them down and you both smile
There is warmth between the two of you
You’ve been sweethearts a long while.

The children have all left…they’re gone
Their rooms quiet and now empty
They’ve grown up …. off on their own
All that’s left are just the memories.

He now leaves … goes to the office
It’s so quiet with him gone
You long to find your purpose
But you’re feeling so alone.

Time has passed you by… too quickly
You remember their first steps
The contests that they won and lost
The passed and failed math tests.

Wait…. there’s his truck parked in the driveway. For some reason he’s come back
Says, “Look what I found abandoned
In a box…. down by the tracks”.

In his arms he holds a puppy
“He was left there all alone
He won’t be any trouble
I’ll take him out when I get home.”

The afternoons have gotten busy
With walks down to the park
Playing in the backyard
Chasing squirrels till it gets dark.

We couldn’t think of what to call him
Thought “Tracks” was a good name
Since he’s now part of the family
Things will never be the same.

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Image from Google Images: ranker.com

House to house and door to door
What is it you are looking for?
A signature, a smiling face?
You make your way from place to place.

Some neighborhoods may look run down
You think that no one is around
But, suddenly a door will open
You cross your fingers and start hoping.

Will they be cooperative?
Sign and date your narrative?
Vote by mail and registrations
Support your cause, no hesitations?

Surprisingly they sign the form
They reach out now…to touch your arm
They thank you for your dedication
The work you do to save our nation.

When they agree to volunteer
Can’t help yourself, you’re brought to tears
Your faith in humanity … restored
You want to knock on every door.

You fill out forms, you pass out cards
Getting pledges is not so hard.
You verify their cell phone number
It starts to rain, you hear the thunder.

The temperature, so blistering hot
A few more doors you need to knock
You have to tell them all the facts
Though sweat is running down your back.

Time to go, it’s time to sleep
Rest those tired and weary feet.
The rain comes down, though soaking wet
This was a day you won’t forget.

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Image from Google Images: twitter.com

Sneaking round behind my back
So surprised at you
Avoidance and deception
The first of many clues.

Loyalty just doesn’t count
“All is fair in love and war”
Guess that pertains to friendships, too
Sadly, I expected more.

Too much hurt , too much pain
You did all that you could
Don’t have faith they will act
Exactly as they should.

They will take and not look back
Isn’t that the name of the game?
Get what you can, when you can
No one remembers your name.

It’s not …what you have done for me
More like, grab it while you can
Hurt feelings a mere casualty
They will never understand.

It’s best to learn to be alone
Sorry… no one’s home
Lick your wounds, take to the bed
Their hearts are made of stone.

Don’t bang your drum, don’t shout so loud
It will fall upon deaf ears
No one’s really listening
No one there to wipe your tears.

Toughen up, stand on your own
Learn to be all by yourself
No one will be standing there
Stop looking for their help.

Whine, whine…they don’t care
In one ear and out the other
Don’t waste your time reiterating
They’ve moved on, they’re with another.

Someone they relate to
Sorry, that someone isn’t you
Take the hint, take a hike
Get over feeling blue.

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Image from Google Images: autoifeng.com