Used To Be

My eyes roll up and down the pages
searching for myself
but the more I look the less I find. 

I’ve lost me in the clouds of ash
that erupted from a myriad of yesterdays
placed one after the other 
along the winding path I travelled
straight to the depths of nowhere  
faster than the wind, and slower 
than the giant redwoods die.

My soul is pitted 
by the harsh bite of the volcanic dust
that chokes and stings
while painting whitewashed fences black
though backs are turned 
and no one sees the change.

Page after page I search in vain
until at last I find me listed 
in the footnotes
under “used to be”



september 2007
Janet Reid





 
Awarded by Poetic Constellations ~ Sasha





Awarded by Poetic Constellations ~ Dawn