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Monday, March 18, 2013

ON A DAY IN EARLY SPRING

















And you find yourself
strolling through the market
on a day in early spring
encountering a woman
who smiles at you
not in a polite way
but in a way that shows
she'd be interested
if you weren't both there
with your carts
passing for the briefest of moments
in the opposite direction
and before you can even think
of what to say
she's turned the corner
Leaving you longing for some other time
and some other place
where two people were properly introduced
by a maiden aunt
in the courtyard of a church
on a day in early spring
extending her white-gloved hand
and holding your gaze
for the briefest of moments
as she demurs
each making a mental note
to get religion again next week


And you find yourself strolling
through an open-air market
on a day in early spring
your demure lady
tending to your child at home

A woman passes by
giving you THAT smile
holding your gaze
for the briefest of moments...

You pivot
eyes following her
as she stops
picks up an apple
and holds it to the light
then slowly turns
in your direction...






40 comments:

  1. Those moments can happen anywhere - and they do.

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  2. BUBBA,
    I know that YOU will understand me when I say: WE ARE CURSED!

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  3. "each making a mental note
    to get religion again next week"
    MAGNIFICENT.

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  4. yes, dont bite the apple....you might get thrown out of the garden...and they might not be gace-filled enough to give you animal skins to cover your shame...

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  5. Well, I like your honesty.

    I'm not sure what the' look' would be. I think men just wonder if I'm having some sort of nervous tic episode.

    Stay in the prune aisle. No temptation, there. Unless you like prunes.

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  6. Oh, temptations abound throughout. You do have to watch out for those apple wielding women :)

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  7. TERI,
    You refer to the proverbial Roman hands and Russian fingers :)

    EVELYN,
    Thanks so much. Interesting how we can "get religion" when some other motivation exists.

    BRIAN,
    We're all just trying to get back to the garden...like at Woodstock.

    THINGY,
    You funny lady. Wonder how things might have been different if Eve had offered a prune...hmmmm...

    LORI,
    I know. Guess I'll just wait and see if anything bears fruit.

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  8. i think if eve had offered a prune they would be running to the bushes for a different reason best to go home to the lady waiting for you xxjen

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  9. Oh, women and their infernal apples. different jen above, I think. I really like this. You have an indefatigable wit that is a great contribution to our memes, Tim-- thanks for participating. xxxxj Good luck with your ummm gardening..pruning... oh hell...go ahead and till that willing earth. xj

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  10. Oh what I loved best is the comment "stay in the orune aisle". Hilarious! I always love your poems, Tim - but you get really good comments too:)

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  11. JEN,
    If Adam had eaten the prune he'd have turned out to be a regular guy.

    JEN REVVED,
    Tilling that fertile soil...that's what I was put on this earth for!

    SHERRY,
    You are so right, I have a talented supporting cast!

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  12. Never religion for religion's sake.
    or maybe, faith or something.
    Why are we always personifying religion?
    get saved by it, find it...

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  13. EVELYN,
    I'd love to hear you expand on that some...go ahead, feel free to clarify as well :)

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  14. howdy neighbor. :)

    only because i know where you live, i saw 4th ave as that market. its so easy to fall into the past in this place.

    this left me with a smile and an "Oooo!!!"

    loved it!

    http://lunawitch15.wordpress.com/2011/07/30/she/

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  15. I remember these times. Wait! the mind screams. Too late! the answer. Fleeting moments. But aren't they exciting to recall?
    Beautiful writing, Timoteo!

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  16. LUNAWITCH,
    Good to hear from you. I was down on 4th Avenue a couple of nights ago...we should meet there sometime and compare notes.

    MARBLES,
    Thanks so much. All moments are fleeting, but it seems that some are more fleeting than others.

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  17. Spring really does bring those thoughts out. Lovely write.

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  18. Ah, Tim... you had me at the picture of magnolias... All the what-ifs and why-didn't-it-turn-out-diferentlys of this could bring me to tears. How terribly difficult it is some days, and how sublime too, to be human.

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  19. Beautiful, wistful, very heartfelt.

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  20. RAZZAMADAZZLE: Spring fever and jungle fever have a lot in common...lol
    KERRY: I am reminded of one of my favorite song titles: "Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most."
    MCGUFFY: Thanks so much, and welcome to my abode!

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  21. wow, Tim. love, love. i so appreciate your directness in this piece. certainly i (and others as well) have written on this subject but not so directly. it's great.

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  22. Haaaa...that viscous cycle cloaked by thge ides of March but much deeper ingrained than the impact a season can have. This was really cool, it takes human nature to a whole new level. Loved it.

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  23. Fabulous. I remember when I used to get that look from men. Did it start as long ago as going to church, in my case with my grandmother? I wonder. But I love the lines
    "each making a mental note
    to get religion again next week"
    K

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  24. oh man...you gotta watch biting that apple...all i am saying...hey i was here before...smiles...gotta admit it feels good to still get looks occassionally....just dont bite the apple...

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  25. ha ha ...yes never bite that apple, it's not worth it in the long run.

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  26. MARIAN: Thank you so much. Yeah, direct like an arrow to the heart.
    HEROTOMOST: 'Tis human nature to be sure!
    KAY: Here's LOOKIN' at you, kid!
    BRIAN: But some are too juicy to resist...
    PANDAMONIUMCAT: I hear you...

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  27. There's a really nice dance in this--that mating dance, but its more of a soul dance sometimes...when the look is just right, it's hard not to bite.

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  28. Absolutely lovely...warm, affectionate, humourous and vulnerable..a poem that tweaks the Spring stirrings:)definitely a keeper!

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  29. Those are the moments that make life interesting and rich. Loved this, Tim! (but I'm biased because I love all your poetry)

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  30. OK Adam. Ya might as well start this "human' story again, from the top! Her name, Eve, right? Are you gonna Fk us up again? or maybe it will be "different" this time!

    Always say what first (2nd?) Adam said, "Hey, I been framed, It was a set-up!"

    Nicely done, who has not "been there" may not really understand. It's like telling an alcoholic, "Hey man, JUST DON'T DRINK! OK?"

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  31. BLACKWILDFLOWERS: Wonderful to hear from you. Yes, life is a dance...too bad I've two left feet!
    CRESSIDA DE NOVA: Beautiful...and I liked your comment too!
    TALON: You flatter me...but don't stop!
    STEVE: Spot on, my man--spot on!

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  32. oh my oh my...you will need all your mental strength to say no...right..? spring and looks and apples...i mean... did you see a snake somewhere as well..? smiles

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  33. CLAUDIA: Ha...saying no is so...NEGATIVE...know what I mean?

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  34. __The grand truth of this, Tim.

    of this passing
    within these long grown years
    a smile once known

    __Sometimes passing eyes meet and in that nano-second, a golden memory returns to both; silence then, recovers the years.
    _m

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  35. ... "picks up an apple" ... I like that ... a lot ... hmmm ... what will it be, Adam ... Paradise or Eve ... you can't have everything, where would you put it ... meouw

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    Replies
    1. Well ... no comment from the poet is a comment in it's self ... thanks, Timo.

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  36. MAGYAR: I've been sloughing off--like dead skin cells--poetry may intrude on life, but life should never intrude on poetry.Your poignant comment...yes, in that nanosecond lies a whole eternity.

    CAT: Sometimes we assume too much, m'lady...yeah, where WOULD we put it? LOL All the self storage places would do a brisk business.

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