Poets: Dorian Sounde, Carol Forrester, Sue Fernott, Cheryl J. Fish, Brittaina Goffy and Syeda Faiza
Towers by Dorian Sounde
that we have to climb.
Sometimes we struggle,
our steps weary,
laboured,
difficult,
prolonged,
pausing every few steps,
to catch a breath,
regroup.
Re-coup.
Sometimes we bound up the spiral staircase to catch a glimpse of the view from the top,
we own it, every step of the way,
it's easy, we're ready,
prepared.
There are towers that we encounter,
that seem too tall,
too vast,
too difficult to comprehend;
They loom, They belittle,
They strike fear.
We pass them by,
afraid to take them on,
a quick nod of acknowledgement as we steer clear,
contour around.
They stand their ground,
showering pity upon us,
But we know our limits.
There's no shame in this,
as we seek out a lesser tower,
more accustomed to our strengths.
A broken tower,
crumbled and ruined,
littering ground with rock,
a challenge that many warriors conquered,
a quest you were forsaken,
a path you forgot.
Princess Tower by Carol Forrester
and called it a princess tower
despite the crumbling stonework
and crooked armed railings
curled into themselves,
paint stripped and creaking
from years of neglect.
One of us fell,
I can't remember which,
and there was screams
or shock,
hurt,
fear.
It was Sammy,
I remember now,
her arm twisted like the railings,
blood a bit like rust
on the stone floor.
After that there were adults,
grey faces and tight mouthed,
tacking up the doorway.
At sixteen I went there again,
and he dared me,
grinning,
to climb up after him.
'You won't fall' he promised.
I didn't scream like Sammy.
There was no hurt
or fear.
Just blood a bit like rust
beside the princess tower,
and a boy not a prince
with red hands and quick feet,
running away from me.
Towers by Sue Fernott
Looms above the town, dark and brooding
Where ancient walls hold their secrets well.
Centuries of stories told
Conjure images of despair,
Of desperation and degradation.
But remember too
That these towers hold other tales,
Memories of softer emotions
Absorbed deep within the stone;
They stand as silent witnesses
To midnight trysts between secret lovers,
Human tenderness in a brutal age,
Protection and safety,
A haven for those within.
SMOKE by Cheryl J. Fish
angled by the wind off the towers before they crumbled
It could go this way or that…Brooklyn, Jersey, uptown
Underground any town my town
Into Canada a hole in the sky
Between your eyelashes touching silk
Defiling plants and water
reaches into mother’s milk
tooth and nostril
The world’s outer inner line
Black smoke of a thousand chemical drifts
White smoke of annihilation
Red smoke of pained regeneration
Blue smoke of ocean crest
True bleeding in the marsh of landfill
Smoke in a blanket of rain.
Cheryl J. Fish, from the manuscript Crater & Tower: Poems of Mount St. Helens Volcano and World Trade Center
Climbing The Tower by Brittaina Goffy
so deep, hot fire
swirling around, you
shove your little paw
Up through the dirt, Earth
towering above, won't you
lend me a foot,hold
your breath
floating up to the
light, you're so light to the
water, floating up to the
stones
So slippery, the dwarves, the trolls,
the giants hoisting you
up, bringing some more
stones, you tower
above the world
Those Towers! by Syeda FR
They seem alluring to dreamy eyes.
Beckoning you to step within
They call you enchantingly into sin.
Deep secrets lie beneath those floors
Deceptive words and lies behind those doors.
Those towers will call and lure your soul
Don't step in that darkness black as coal.
Towers reaching high in skies
Will bewitch you, look away O eyes!!