what is the sound of a feeling
if it’s from harm or healing?
what is the taste of a punch
if it’s not a beverage with lunch?
what is the look of an insult
if it’s from one you no longer trust?
what is the texture of despair
when roots are pulled along with hair?
and what is this sweet smell of escape
-with no longer a need to bow and scrape?
©Vivian Zems
Poetry Pantry #483
Smell The Coffee 
June 16, 2019 at 1:28 pm
Wow, mi LIKE this Vivian. M
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June 16, 2019 at 1:47 pm
Yes Vivian, the senses free us to experience the polarities of life as bravely as we dare….
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June 16, 2019 at 2:20 pm
I read this–because I’m going to lean toward hope–as a sense of wonder in a freer space. The disorientation and elation were moving.
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June 16, 2019 at 3:39 pm
My goodness this is good! I especially love; “what is the texture of despair,” … sigh so heartwrenchingly beautiful! ❤️
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June 16, 2019 at 5:42 pm
“….the texture of despair when roots are pulled along with hair” is so bang-on – the betrayal of trust, the death of hopes and dreams. I have lived all of that.
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June 16, 2019 at 11:50 pm
This poem doesn’t shy away from the brutal facts. May it shout loudly and be widely heard!
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June 17, 2019 at 12:00 am
I enjoyed the way you invoked the senses here!
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June 17, 2019 at 3:55 am
A sigh of relief at freedom. You have alluded to this subject before Vivian and I am sorry if one of my own gender gave you cause to write this way. However more importantly hoping that your life now is filled with love from family and friends.
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