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

tears that seem to come whenever they like
starting gently and then flooding the world that needs laughter
happy or sad they are wet and turning faces red
let go or let in what was and what is
swim in it, float in but never drown in it
maybe that is why crying is better in the shower
the tears rise and fall
then they join the oceans
maybe that is why beach walking year round is so therapeutic

c@rainbowchaser2019

Cream colored
Fuschia blushed
All dancing on the wind
Spice rack colored leaves
paid them no attention
as the wind went unnoticed in the big Apple

c@rainbowchaser2018

Yes,she talks to squirrels while admiring their acrobatics on a phone line above
Monarch butterflies land in her hand and visit awhile
It’s an Indian Summer and things go up and down daily
The autumnal rainbow is slowly beginning it’s spice rack color show
She likes her iPod tunes and private fitness time
An October walk in New York
Greeting and playing with every dog or puppy crossing her path

C@rainbowchaser2018

Blessings and Burdens
Rural and Rustic
Urban and Unique
Pathetic and Purposeful
Wealthy and Woe begotten
Wiser not Wise
Always learning and listening
Gray since I was twenty-five
My monthly hairdresser visits deals with it
Luckily forward not backward
Look back at yesterday
Enjoy Today
Hopeful for tomorrow
55 and over communities not a prerequisite
Not for everybody
That includes Arizona and Florida
If you like that great for you
Older not Old

My Dear Old Friend
Come to talk to you again
About what is, what was, and what will be
So many pens and styles
Computer screens
Notebooks plain and colored
Lined and unlined
You were the one I talked
Ran too
Confided in
Even now
Just as I bust out bursting free
I still find the time
For you are always my first and best friend

Old friends
Book ends
Part of yesterday
Unclear about today
Let's not discuss tomorrow
Phone calls stop
Not even to shoot the breeze
News Bad or Good is a thing of the past
Nothing left to say or share
Did we remember to care?
When the efforts made get lost
Leave the door open perhaps a ajar
What used to be no longer goes very far

C@rainbowchaser2021

You would not be here without it
There is no cause to doubt it
Everything old is new again through the eyes of Boomers
It is about more than age and place
So let me get into your face
Stop judging and meet all kinds of people
Age is a number that is all it is
By the way I like Dua Lipa too

C#rainbowchaser2021

United we stand
Perhaps you will hear the lyric and live the words Divided we fall
Selfless and caring people get it
Those not possessing these qualities don't get the message
Unless they listen and learn
Some live in yesterday
Cannot comprehend today and not prepared for tomorrow
My heart hurts for them but there are others like me that care
The Do-gooders who quietly carry on and move forward
So let's sing that Old song
Loud, clear,and strong
Stand with us

Seven months of fighting the good fight
Waiting to hear two magic words.
That isn't until Friday.
Side effects are still there, and fatigue still hangs around.
We want to get back to what was and put what is behind us.
Before the echoes start, we know there are follow-ups and check-ups
in the future
Until Friday, think of our once-a-day gratitude that we will get the news we have waited for.

@rainbowchaser2023

A pastry.
A Danish, almond preferably.
A large cookie from the bakery
A Multi-grain or rye bagel.
Walking twenty five miles a week affords this
Iced green tea accompaniment when dewpoint goes over seventy
Truth be told, iced tea is a preferred beverage all year long with lemon
Being an epicurean is fun but not easy.
Then again that is every day of the week.
The treat is once a week.

C@rainbowchaser2021

Sweetest one
Prejudice goes away and never returns
Accepted for who and what we are
Not what others want us to be
Love is love
You matter
You care
Make a difference
Dare to be the very best that you are capable of being
The party will be international, and those invited will want to attend
Til then

She was a teen rushing to go back to school
Danger lurked and she was victimized
The hurt and pain were one thing
The dirt and disgust was another
It took years of the right help and the understanding of one special person
He made that rag doll feel like a swan
Truth is she will always feel like a ragdoll
Every year around this time, she chooses to be in crowds but never alone
He took the dignity and sweetness of many young girls
They are forever changed
One horrible winter

C@rainbowchaser2019

The twelfth of never came unexpectedly when a confession is unleashed
You danced at her wedding and she confided it should have been our wedding
Another fell for you and you admitted you were a two timing man
Strike one
The platonic friend listened but didn’t judge
This was strike two
Strike two came on when you ended a romantic weekend
Leaving a hysterical woman in a hotel
Seems you called at an ungodly hour saying you you needed to talk
Seems you didn’t have the guts to tell me that you led a double life
You were a one man man
After all this time nothing has changed and your friends are the same those that we know of
You never combine us?
Strike three you are still playing games and luckily life continues
How you play ball is your business
Love is love
Love who you love
C@rainbowchaser2021

It was gentle and quiet like a warm summer breeze
Gone too soon and passed you by
You can recall it and bring it back but it is never quite the same
Maybe even better because it left an impression
That smile so unexpected
The kindness and generosity of a stranger
The toll paid for
The Thank you
One more time
Precious and perfect in a world that needs so much more and we can all make small changes toward it

C@rainbowchaser2019

Joy and peace of mind
Used to be easier
You watch your step and surroundings
what is Worth it is your choice
Too many lost
Hoping to be found
No matter what you celebrate
Just respect each other
Take one step towards harmony

C@rainbowchaser2019

Maybe it's the stars in the sky.
Maybe it's hard to see you cry.
Maybe it's the sound of his voice.
I would listen if I didn't have a choice.
Maybe it's her smile that lights up any room.
It's magical how it gets rid of any gloom.
Maybe it's the joy and happiness.
Without all of you, there would be no bliss.
Maybe because my dream came true.
The published writer and poet is before you.
Just like things change within the seasons.
Proud to write number one thousand on Hello Poetry today.
One thousand reasons
One thousand poems

C@rainbowchaser2023

You said what you felt
Never taking into account the pain you caused
Hurting me is par for the course
Hurting someone else is intolerable
So the door is open
The phone won't ring
Text messages and Facebook will stop
Say what you will but you have no edit button
Frankly, my life matters not only yours \
Always about you
It is all about you as usual
So we are On Hold
Time is said to heal most wounds
Not sure this time

You're a nobody
You're nothing
Am I somebody?
Every time that I write I feel the power
I am a storyteller
How I found my family and how they found me
As they get to know me
Those people I am coming to know through stories and photographs
shaped who we are
As I write the book, I asked questions
The answers only Heaven knows

C@rainbowchaser2023

Nobody else will do
For comfort and joy
For tears and travel dreams
For laughter and love
For silence and quiet beyond compare
These are the arms I run to
Those are the arms that empathize and sympathize
In your arms is where I awaken and slumber
As your blue eyes reassure me and only in your arms

Things are getting better
Not normal
Still need care and caution
Mourning those we lost and what we thought we cared about
Do we know what we care about now?
Do we care differently?
Those with mental health issues are still held at bay
Echoing the words stay away
This May
Mental Health month
Think carefully and again about what you thought you knew
Maybe slowly we will start to understand

C@rainbowchaser2021

Only the Bullied
Learn to Accept
Few or no friends
Frenemies?
They just have enough
No more
No less
They don"t expect
They were strippec of wanting anything else
When you are excluded
When your parent calls you Plain Jane
Made to sit with boys at school
You are not pretty enough by their standards
Your clothes are not nice enough
Your metal braces and rubber banded teeth don't fit in
You catch them doing things in school bathrooms thaf you wish you never witnessed
These memories come back to haunt you later on
No matter how successful you have become
Only the bullied know why children should never ever get away with doing this to others
Even now

Expectations not so much
Dreams to be conquered and enjoyed until new ones appear
Wet circles big and small syncopated as the umbrella plays pizzicato
as you try to stay dry
Damp and dreary for some
Invigorating for others
Leaving Starbucks with last sip of black iced tea in hand
Only walking in the rain

C@rainbowchaser 2023

Undergraduates searching for a major
Finding friends and lovers like a menu they can’t choose from
Though they delight in looking
Should they sample or taste?
Do they commit is daring passion worth the risk
Sometimes you stare a little longer than you should
Maybe the right song with the wrong car company is on the radio
Long strolls on the beach when you want to be with another
A kiss that should never have happened
An embrace that should have been a quick hug
Only yesterday
When you parted company
Going your own ways
When Alexa plays Stevie Nicks or Fleetwood Mac
It is only yesterday

C@rainbowchaser2022

Bid Farewell to Before and Welcome to After
It was only yesterday but sometimes letting it go
frees you in ways you never imagined
You should remember who and what was
On the road for today and towards tomorrow
It was only yesterday leave it there
Enjoy being who you are
c@rainbowchaser2022

You always find a way to make me smile
When weeks and days don't jive
You invoke the one day at a time mantra
Only you my one and only show me to live and be alive
Regardless of reasons or matters
The biggest gift is being your wife
So, please stop Thanking me for loving you
My pleasure and a treasure

C@rainbowchaser2022

You were completely unexpected.
My heart had been trampled upon and I was broken.
You were patient and caring.
A very good friend who became my best friend as well as the love of my life.
Sometimes things were easy.
There have been hurdles and roadblocks.
Sad Goodbyes and Lovely Welcomes.
If I had to  do it all over again,
it would be with you.
Only you.

C@rainbowchaser2023

Letting you in was not happening
shutting you out was easier
Dealing was the way out
Shutting you out was easier
Didn’t please you
Didn’t matter
It was what it was
Never will be
You wont trust yourself
You won’t get back to me
Open book
Let myself in
Let myself go
The cards are out on the table
Shuffled the deck
Read me,turn the pages
Open book

C@rainbowchaser2019

If you open your heart
The rest will follow
Surely as rainbows come after rainy days
Surely as you can wish upon a star
Take good care of yourself first
Guilty as charged because I put others before myself
Open your eyes
Close your mouth
Open your mind
Open your heart.

C@rainbowchaser2022

Not like you
No carbon copy
Even AI has no clue about you
Along the way the tears dried
You did it your way
You listened
You learned
Wear your label and heart well
Original

The best words
They flow and take on a life of their very own
The narrative tells itself and reads well
It stays with you
You want to write it down and perfect it
Polish it and place it
Edit and edit again
Writers strive to be original
They do their best to get there

C@rainbowchaser2020

Reimagine
Imagine
Reboot
Boot
Refinish
Finish
Redevelopnent
Devel­op
Creativity and Originality?

C@rainbowchaser 2023

When inside out becones outside in
The worst is the best you've ever had
What was good never had a chance to be bad
You finally got to see the other side but you didnt dare
take the ride
Just when the world didnt rhyme
Does it make what you are feeling less sublime?
Did you ever really start?
Will you get up and begin?
Win
C@rainbowchaser 2023

Been  a rainbow chaser my entire life
There are dark hours all around us
We will break through and find a way to the dawn as we salute all those heroes and heroines out there doing their utmost to get us through
It will be worth it in the end,but there is a lot of grief and sorrow accompanying all of us
Make a difference every single day
You will decide and make us all proud
We can’t look the other way
Those literal ones out there may not get it
Us Figurative types have it, always have
We never fit in before but we do now and forevermore in better days ahead

C@rainbowchaser2020

Sweetheart, may you have a wonderful life
A crayola-colored rainbow filled  with
JOY
LOVE
PEACE
MAGIC
WONDER
Very best of everything, sweetheart
A brand new gift for all of us.
Love Auntie M and Uncle H

Soulful
Searching
Word Pioneers
Ever creating
Crafting
Originality beyond compare
Members that have a depth and imaginations others wish for
Tney are the most special group I have ever encountered
Our Poets
Proud to be with you

We help and give as we can
Keep comments and discouraging tirades private
Been there and done that as an Educator and in my current work
Where are the good and caring?
The educated and well meaning?
We are the United States
United towards the future and making things the very best they can be
Science and Technology will get us there
People need to remember that what was may never be again
Be ready for the very best which has yet to come

C@rainbowchaser2020

Jif,Skippy,Nutty ,Cashew and otbers wete eating acorns.
The aroma and  sounds of  shells hitting tbe wet grass alerted them
They looked at me and took the nuts
Some eating
While others climbing up trees with shelled nuts in their.mouths
Before you poo poo this
We support charities and care
These adoreable creatures saw me through the last four difficult years
Now,more smiles and hope for better times ahead
Til next week little ones

When does one push the stop button?
When the noises in your head get so loud you stop them before they explode
Leaving you to wonder do you leave well enough alone
Just leave
Pick up the pieces and move forward
Is there anything left of what used to be?
Has the virus destroyed so much that all we do is stand still?
While others try another approach
Sweetness has been lost in the air


C@rainbowchaser2022

Not an oldies song though it is heard on Sirius radio.
When you love someone trying to run and ruin your life
You learn that you don’t like them
Narcissistic tendencies don’t make sense to the sensitive and or creative types
Like those who read and teach Thoreau and hike Walden Pond
When you have a connection and experience touching Henry David's Desk
Those who are different know the score
Now, you are Inside looking out
No explanation should be necessary, as it were
As it is

C@rainbowchaser2021

How many guitars did you capture?
Chiarascurro worked well for some
Did you enjoy the colors you employed?
To be a fly on the wall during that conversation
Picasso shared that artists lie and truth is not their goal
Perhaps it is a truth at many different levels
Neither Pablo nor Juan is still here for us to ask
Can you imagine that conversation if they were here
C@rainbowchaser 2023

Long time past
You were under my skin and in my heart
You broke my heart
Crushed my spirit
Made me ugly and useless
At 19 ,walking hormone was a great description
First love can be lust
Looking back, must have been
Seeing you in a crowd not 18 any longer
Watching the look of astonishment when out eyes connected
Looking forward and walking away
Knowing an everlasting love got me over you
The second time around is in its 41st year and More today than yesterday
Over you

C@rainbowchaser2021

Love them all and appreciate them
Watch and photograph them
All different and interesting
You are regal
You are sweet and strong
You have beauty and are statuesque but swans are mean-spirited
Those differences and the respect that Mother Nature has given her children is evident
She and her children deserve it
Even though Dolphins, Pandas, Koalas and whales have my heart
There is room for Owls,Squirels,and
Swans
What is precious  formidable and causes awe struck moments
Biodiversity fills me up
Owls,Squirrels and Swans as well as all their creature friends
Great whether big or small
@rainbowchaser2022

Are you seeking the correct word or words?
Imagery
Photographs and Landscapes
Colors Crayola has not conceived of yet
Do they tell the story?
Is it fresh and new?
Does it capture what you need it to say?
Is your Muse beckoning you?
Did they wake you again in time to type it or jot it down?
In the middle of the night
Just when sleep comes
You know you are no longer a novice
You are a writer being called to do what you must do
Pleasant dreams and hope your passion keeps your poetry coming

C@rainbowchaser 2023

Who do you touch?
Who touches you?
Do you have regrets?
Regret being kind?
Did you light someone's life?
Stop being haunted by what you have done.
What about what you have not done?
Then do it
May take patience and persistence but we should be used to that.
Rekindle the spirit
Know the difference between empathy and sympathy
Same goes with accept and except
Know and live by your values as well your priorities
Some are meant to be broken
But not those golden to you
Change is the constant be ready for it
Touch spirits and souls
Did you matter to the world?
You control what you want to contribute even now
Remember that
What we take for granted so many wish they had
Pandemic Poetry

C@rainbowchaser2020

Great collection of pens
Grows so much but in my home office now
Notebooks and paper of all kinds
By the night table
In my bag
At the ready
Words are usually floating in my head
All hours of the day
The microcassette he gifted me long ago still works
Tune out nonsense but engage the words
As an educator I know both sides
As a student the Creative writing award in High school
Two books written and something coming in a different genre
You are all in good company because we know and understand
Started at eight years of age and paper is still at the ready

At Daybreak
On the east coast of the United States
Take a closer look
Mercury, Saturn, and Venus
Crescent moon
A parade of Planets

C@rainbowchaser2022

Can we be certain yet optimistic?
Hugs are passion personified
Seize you moment as you do your day
Believe with you heart
Touch with your soul
See with your ears
Feel with your eyes
Know that change takes time to work through
Have no expectations and just journey on towards your imagination
Hoping you will find a creative, sensitive, and sophisticated environment
Look for me because that is where I will always be

C@rainbowchaser2020

Changing rules that are fair ,just,and well documented
Seems to change when applicable to one party while the other tries to uphold and follow laws,rules,regulations,and History.
History repeats itself but it doesn't change as it should.
Some seem to rewrite as it helps their cause.
The former President and his gang violate everything and don't play fair
They just want to win though they gave list and refuse to admit it
Lying cheating, manipulating are their areas to excel in
Maybe that us why Depression and Paranoia
United we stand
Divided we fall
Rules can be broken or bent for the good
The evil need not apply.

C@rainbowchaser2022