We are tough
We are easy
Even if you leave it stays with you
You are born and bred with this quality
Not better or worse but unique just like our city is
Just a remarkable combination of guts and just the right seasoning
There is an accent from every borough which is undeniable like the Park Your car in Harvard Yard r's in Boston
We still Pop and Rock while others try to roll over us
We find away to come eight on through
That is why we are New York easy because no matter where you land and roam
New York City is home

C@rainbowchaser2021

Thanks Jerry Seinfeld
Thanks Andrew Cuomo
Make up your mind ,Mr.Mayor
Whose side are you really on?
Mister President your press secretary compared Teachers to meat packers.
All important but a lot more than apples and oranges
We are not babysitters and we have the education to prove it.
It is so much more than making it through the rain or the memory of 911.
What is essential to some doesn't matter to others
We have always had the right stuff
Even when good wasn’t good enough
Whatever came at us we made it through
New York Tough
New York Tough

c@rainbowchaser2020

Not sure where it is going
Obviously, not sitting still waiting for it to arrive
The fat lady hasn't sung
Letting go of what was no longer working challenged me
Free of what was and hoping what is and what will be
Is a gift unwrapped
Not just a journey but something beyond passion
As well as whatever magic befriends me along the way
Paid my dues but know there is something to playing it forward
It is more than Okay to be just me
If that isn't to your liking, step back and away, far away
Next Chapter

C@rainbowchaser2021

A Memoir
Five years of research
Going into Edit
This year it will be published and I am nervous
Poetry has always been my friend and companion
Always will be
First for me
Root for me
Will update you all

Roasted unsalted nuts are in the park shared on the ground near three trees as is weekly. routine
An East Coast teacher quit teaching and gets paid per poem
A professional poet?
What about us?
Now, the memoir goes to PR people.
Maybe we will get to the next step this time.
There are a few along the way
I am a poet
Maybe this time I am a writer
Wish me luck

Too many tears to dry
Too many last said goodbyes
Too many would've ,could've, should haves
Echoing and ringing into the night
Next time we will throw caution to the wind
Next time we will right the wrongs
Next time we will take a chance and take action
As for me, no time like the present because the gift of tomorrow may very well not come
Next time
Patience isn't always available next time

C@rainbowchaser2020

Stop the world
Time to get off
Too many values,hearts,and people broken
Too many stupid and pathetic surprises
Imbalances and no vacancy in what we have come to know as society
We chose ugly and threw
beauty away
Some changes that are inevitable are not acceptable
Sweeping them under the rug and turning out backs accomplishes nothing
Defining it as the new normal just let's us go with the flow?
Optimism might point us towards a better direction
We need to heal
We need to talk
Face to face
Like we used to do
Not all of yesterday is bad
We have tuned out
We are members of too many clubs
There is one club that matters
The human race
There are no band aids to heal it
Common Sense
Dignity ,Grace,and Respect
Accepting change by moving forward not backward

c@rainbowchaser2018

Yentas and nosey bodies need not apply
Know it alls
Remember you always have something new to learn
Curiosity is fine but keep your distance
Reframe from negativity
Hold your thoughts and tongue before uttering things you wish you never said
Men are just as guilty as women
Usually the warning comes when people like this are around
Perhaps their lives are empty and boring
No excuses

C@rainbowchaser2021

You don't give up
You don't give in
You compromise and realize what you need
You are more than you know
Fear does you no good at all
You can be afraid but that is different
Keep learning daily to find out more
No fear and fearless

C@rainbowchaser2022

Somebody crossed the line
Meant well but should have initiated brain and not mouth
Just because you think of something doesn't give you the right to hurt somebody
Intention has nothing to do with it
Keep it to yourself
There are those out there with a mission to fix people
Take them as they are if you have a chance at a friendship
That is a word that should never be given out randomly or assigned without consideration
As does the word Love
People with no filter need to keep their distance

C@rainbowchaser2020

No more tears
Cried too many
Made myself so ill that blood pressure went sky high
You are not worth my health
There is no worth left
No words left to be said
Moving forward because to all of you
I am dead
No repairs
No apologies
Scars and wounds way too deep
No fixes just goodbyes

C@rainbowchaser2018

Everywhere you go
They accompany you
Completely unexpected
So much more than words
Lifetime companions
Usually welcomed
Until they dont fit
It is your job
The ingredients are before you
You know exactly how it is
When you get it  right
BECAUSE YOU write
The noiSES BECOME POETRY

c@rainbowchaser2019

The mountains you climb even from your chair
The achievements gained and earned
You will never satisfy her  so stop trying
You enabled and cajoled
Inspite and despite your efforts
You will never please the dissatisfied person that
Should love you unconditionally
No matter

C@rainbowchaser2019

I will take your pain and illnesses so you are happy
I will turn off the naysayers who hear but don't listen
No matter where or when
No matter the weather or hour of the day
No matter whenever
I will always love you and put you first
As for the others that are selfish and out for themselves
I haven't the time for you

C@rainbowchaser2023

Let joy in and help those that cant find it
Give your time or if you can ,share
Open your heart and let those negative thoughts leave and hopefully return less frequently
Remember that family and friends are the best gifts in the world because they cant be gift wrapped and hopefully never returned
be humble and grateful because you have more than you know
Those people you let go of have their own to deal with
They are no longer the drama they caused
No matter what you celebrate may I wish you warmth,joy, peace and most important please take they time to communicate with people
Social media and Technology need a vacation

C@rainbowchaser2019

You know me
Don't you ?
Better than I know myself
What matters
What makes me tick and tock?
Not the website.
Being creative is not easy
Some don't understand
Somehow never needed to explain myself to you
You called me special and still do
You see a beauty that I don't see
Luckily, by the angels care and grace of the galaxy
You still love me and I love you
no need to explain
The couple still hand in hand will be us

C@rainbowchaser2020

Out of sight
Out of mind
Somehow yesterday wasn't left behind
Still isn't working
Incomplete dreams on rewind
Saying or singing Let it go isn't enough
Compromise doesn't work all the time
Keep your vitality up at all costs
You cast your kite into the sky
Flying it your own way
No regrets
No regrets

C@rainbowchaser2021

Nothing ordinary about it
It is extraordinary
Your take away is that simple and  simply are divine
Think very carefully before you utter another word
Don't even think a thought
Before you jump a boundary don't go there
Think before you say something that might hurt somebody
You may regret it
Rather walk away with my head held with no regrets
Mentioning them not worth it

C@Rainbowchaser2022

Grew up avoiding “I can’t”
My father told me never to say or believe this contraction
Despite and in spite of hiccups and wrong turns
What one puts into matters is as much as what one gets out of the effort
There are situations and outcomes
Does one gamble?
Does one give up?
Choices and Options
The words “I can’t” just don’t compute or connect
You must keep trying to make things happen
There is no room for excuses or “I can’t” in anyone’s life
No room for it

C@rainbowchaser2024

When you hurt somebody
When your acts brake their soul
When loved ones stand by them or walk away because there is nothing left for them to do
Are you listening in DC?
Everywhere and all over the world
Be a loving and caring
Genuine human being
Get help if you need it
Admit your issues and face them

Those,who don't qualify
You are not above the law
Your day will come to face the music The Me too movement is only the beginning
To right so many wrongs
c@Rainbowchaser 2018

No disrespect for the power of prayer
It can't fix this
Somebody wants a Civil War in the United States
History repeats itself and he lit the flame encouraging it
Just like he did on January 6th
He and his followers need to be gone and dealt with before another parent buries a child
Or another underpaid hard working educator is taken way to soon
Care needs to be part of every life not a chosen few
How do I know?
As an educator that took a weapon from a child before the class might have had a tragedy
The student brought the knife to school because he was threatened
The dean was dumbstruck when the report and weapon were handed to him
This did not happen yesterday and he had no right to do that
This comes straight from the heart and mind of a caring soul that has had enough
Many have had enough long before 2020
Not another Heartbreak
C@rainbowchaser2022

Your way or the highway
You’re a one-way street
It is always about you
Your narcissistic tendencies just need to send them packing
Cried the last tear
No more sleepless nights
You call others selfish but truth be told it is you that is
Call me sensitive or whatever you like
For now, Don’t call
Stay clear
Enough is enough
Not slamming the door shut
Just keeping my distance
Time may not heal this wound
Not another moment until you learn it’s not always about you

There will be books ,documentaries, discussions and songs written about 2020
What it is doing and what it will continue to do to the lives of people
Many sentences starting with do you remember
You are one of Mother Nature's children now
Heard you during a thunderstorm and asked you to quiet down last night
Loud enough that it was booming and deafening
I have forgiven many things since last Monday when you were taken from us
There is one issue that forgiveness cannot be granted
You hated the love of my life when a parent should welcome and love them with open arms because they chose your child
He gave me his name and more love than a lifetime can hold
Yet, your other child's love was loved from the very moment he met you
He bought me a wedding dress never had a gown
The reception you denied me was a small restaurant that he paid for
His parents were ready to give us that party but we declined for all parents should chip in
She got the reception and the gown?
First born crushed again.
Even my wedding album was a gift from his cousin
October will bring our 40th wedding anniversary celebrated differently than we originally planned
Witnessed by many spoken about by very few unless confidentially
This I cannot forgive because the pain and heartache it caused and still causes makes for a suffering wished on nobody else

C@rainbowchaser2020

We have weathered storms
You are my umbrella and my sunshine no matter the storm
Lost loved ones and cheered those battling whatever threat challenges them
Through my eyes love surrounds me
The same holds true for you
When you look at me the best thing that ever happened to me is near me
Still, hand in hand
Still dating each other
After all this time
You welcome my mornings
You are still a pain but you are my pain in the ****
Talking in the wee hours when sleep should befriend us
We can make new out of what is familiar
We never give up or give in
Not done loving you yet
Nor will I ever be

C@rainbowchaser2022

Started something
Under construction
A few things yet to iron out
It's May but feels like March today and yes Global Warming
You want to go for it and do it all
Do you take a breath?
Take a step back and regroup
Not finished yet
Under construction

C@rainbowchaser2023

Don't think that what works for you works for everybody
Not so
Cbange is inevitable but as an old sing tells us
You make your own kind  of music
Even if nobody else sings along
Enjoy what you like
Have a lovely life
Your life isn't a prescription for everybody
So next time you talk about your life like a Del Webb commercial
It isn't for everybody


C@rainbowchaser2024

Groups of new people unnerve me
Not interested in their worlds or goals
Taken time for me to care about myself and those I love
Just because they are your friends doesn't mean they are mine
They matter and not sure I want others to matter
There is a golden circle built on time and trust
Those are the ones where time is spent and enjoyed
Trusting new people isn't easy
What is in it for them and there is nothing I want to offer
Wish me well, Much Thanks
Please don't plan my life or future
There is much privacy surrounding a loner's life
If you are let in, it takes time and not in the plans
Keep your distance and mind your business
Been hurt enough not to let it happen again

C@rainbowchaser2021

Apologies and understanding not enough this time
Health issues would be the only accepting factor here
One can not control Mother Nature or illness
You know the old saying about plans
Two years of no visit now is three because of this
What if a Herculean effort was made and change is only one side of the story
Somebody very special throws a hiccup or monkey wrench that is no longer acceptable?
A friendship that has weathered decades
The best and worst of life celebrated and dealt with
Maybe not meant to be any longer?
There is no band aid for this
Not meant to be?
We will see this is so much more than disappointing

C@rainbowchaser2021

Yesterday was your birthday
Not stalking you just revisited yesterday
Wont reach out and never will'
Reminders of you are a very biter pill
SUBO, Whitehead Hall, and Boylan came to call
It was long ago and far from away
Hope your life is happier today
It was not meant to be even for nineteen year old me
Was blind and deaf to reality, you see
Why you played along as a friend, history will show
Better things happened later there this is how it would go
My husband and Two master degrees came
Life has never been the same
We were not meant to be
Took a very long time to move forward you see
I wanted and needed you but all you could do was take and not give
Not a life I wanted to live

C@rainbowchaser2020

You had the look
You had the smile
You had it all
Not mine
Not mine
No matter what I did
No matter what I tried
Platonic is a stop sign
Don't go any further
Telling you for the very last time
Can't be had
Tough too bad
Not even a one night stand?
Not mine
Not mine
Not mine
The sun will never shine

C@rainbowchaser2021

Grieving gently and quietly
Reminders of her everywhere
As forward thinking marches through
Justice Ginsburg's passing just makes it harder
They came from similar backgrounds and ages
People need to keep their distance
Well meaning and supportive
There is nothing happy about this state of mind
Letting others deal is the best notion
Spending time with those closest works
Even then, respecting and knowing that as the Winter Holidays approach
Making excuses and postponing and saying Not Know
is the way to go

C@Rainbowchaser2020

Thanks for reading
Thanks for comments
Taking a short break
Need to reevaluate where my writing is going
When a bookstore puts your books on their websites but not in their brick and mortar stores
Am I not good enough?
Maybe I really can’t write?
Not looking to lick my wounds or for you to cheer me on
Your comments are appreciated more than I can say
I may very well be back but for now you all write on
Write on?

Together everything is easier
But it won't be easy
Find a way to make it look like it is
Especially when everybody is looking
Who really cares if they are talking because you can't control what they think and say
They need to self edit and self control
Just know your heart and soul
There are surprises along with moments that will become memories
You will reach for them when they are needed on rainy and stormy days
Winter does come during the Summer so be ready though you can never be sure but be sure of each other
Not the way you imagined but incredible just the same
Choose your love carefully and only be crazy for your one and only


C@rainbowchaser2021

Time heals some wounds but bullying and repetition of what is expected and used to be does not
You can be too good for what it is worth
Your worth to yourself gets diminished especially when you are giving, kind, and sensitive
Going back for more of this narcisstic tirade?
Not this time

Cherry Blossoms in Washington, D.C.
Lonely without visitors to stroll among them
Alone and desolate
parks all over the United States
Moment of Nature on CBS is how my Sunday starts
That segment is a great routine
We have to remember that what we look forward to are things we took for granted like who and what we love
Never do that, especially now when we can't see many of them in person as mundane or boring
Cherish them and what you care about daily
Nothing trivial or old school about that
C@rainbowchaser2020

When you’e not looking
You find who and what you are looking for
You never expect it and perhaps not quite prepared for it
And yet in a New York minute
When you stopped looking
Right before your very astonished eyes
the person or path you seek
You haven’t met yet
Yet it is right in your grasp but it yet

C@rainbowchaser2020

She shares the same birthday with the 46th President of the USA.
Happy Birthday, Joe!
She is a week older than Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.
She shares other Kennedy family birthdays.
The word Rotunda still frightens her because she heard it echoed when our President was assassinated when she was little
She is a Scorpio who brings in the winter Holidays every year even though she was born in the Fall
She is caring, generous, creative, and Kind to a fault.
A Beautiful heart with a plain Jane face but her husband begs to differ
Happy Birthday Scorpio Girl

C@rainbowchaser2022

We begin the holiday season
Sometimes a second thought
Some more likely an endless party and celebration
She is careful and would do anything not to hurt any living soul
She knows hurt too well
Creative,fearless,and lover of art and culture
She travels and journeys no matter her destination
She is sensitive, caring, and loving.
A human care bear if you will
Be careful not to hurt or break her heart
She may forgive you but will never forget
She is a Scorpio
November girls
Happy Birthday to all of us

c@rainbowchaser2021

Quiet befriended me and the best companion when least expected
Moving forward while treading carefully
It is more than incredible to watch a butterfly or marvel at Mother Nature's other children
So much better than chit chat and gossip from voices I choose to silence
They mean well but a waste of time for me
Now

C@rainbowchaser2023

You love who you love
No country or government should dictate otherwise
No religion
No political party
Nor should any State or Country tell wonen how to live their lives.
As a straight women who survived a crime and am forever changed and scarred by it,how dare they!
LGBQT people deserve respect
Think what you want but be kind and thoughtful
Now not yesterday.

C@rainbowchaser2023

Our incredible treasures and memories
Are you joking?
You are beyond comprehension

Every single day they get found
Observe carefully or you will miss them
Some of your very own making
Others are there for the picking
They are there with a promise
The more you open your heart and take them in
Nuggets become moments and found memories
Even THE HEARTACHE IN DC YESTERDAY CANT TAKE THEM AWAY

C@Rainbowchaser2021

Sleepless nights are slowly leaving
Still hard to fall away
This too shall pass is different for many
Reality set in like a lightning bolt in your mind
Reminders are there
Somethings are easier and others are void
Grief needs to be gentle even though it hits you like a mac truck that runs over you and never stops until it it good and ready
Seems like it is on instant replay
2020 will eventually end and some good things will be remembered
as for the others, many of us will remain numb for the time being even as we move forward and try to live life the very best we can

C@rainbowchaser2020

My grandfather loaded his pockets and the squirrels had a feast
He died before I was born so this is family lore
The family of five squirrels who live in a park near me
They are sweet and precious and bother nobody
Rocky is the family acrobat
Three are not named yet
Nutella sat on the side branch like a suspended in motion cartoon character
My bi-weekly leaving of nuts and seeds paid off today
Walking away , she came down to retrieve a cashew and disappeared
Seconds later she appeared and helped herself to a pecan
On a cold morning walk before zoom meetings
She made my day

C@rainbowchaser2021

Teachers know it as one thing
Life has taught us it is something more
You can be what you want to be
Do what you want to do
Accomplish a lot or little
Just be comfortable in your own skin
Easier said than done
Saying no means no
Not that you don't care
Are not interested
Just two letters that you should not feel guilty about uttering
Work in progress for me
Not a people pleasing person
Just don't do drama anymore or try to avoid it at all costs
It is expensive and my time is worth it
Taken me too long to realize that we are all worthy
Even me

C@rainbowchaser2020

If you swim in it,my apologies
If you drown in it,here is a life vest
The dirt and disgust can't be washed away.
Feeling ugly never goes away although know we are swans in waiting
The flashbacks are real
Please swim to the shore
Do what needs to be done so you can enjoy the ocean with less pain and divine dignity

c@rainbowchaser2018