RED BIRD (photo) & ISN'T RED FOR STOP LIGHTS (dreamku series) by Roswila

ISN’T RED FOR STOP LIGHTS

the beautiful small
dark haired woman’s aghast at
how he looks at her –
not now, not here, sexual
tension just won’t do tonight

but there’s no stopping
him at any time, much less now
when his ego’s bruised –
he drapes her in a bright red
swath of shiny material

like an ersatz
Pygmalion she emerges
from shapelessness as
he recreates her wearing
a vivid hug-curving gown

covering her half-
exposed breasts only makes him
more determined
she gives up and lifts her arms
from her red-sheathed sides

the look in her eyes
that he never fathoms: if you
‘can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em


[four tanka and a dreamku on a dream of 8-25-12. Hm, the previous night I was out to assassinate “him” and last night I’m tired of not being able to resist “him.” Can we spell “ambivalence,” children? By the way, neither dream man was someone I know. Last night’s was even extremely vague. The effect of his actions was more present than he and that gives me a huge clue to what’s being worked on. Photo “Red Bird” by Roswila]

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO DREAMKU (& PHOTOS): The dream-based poems posted on this blog -- dreamku, tanka, two-liners, and monoku -- are offered in the spirit of collaboration. I have done my part. Now it’s your turn to jump in and see what comes up for you. I.e., there is no right or wrong way to understand or interpret any of these dream offerings. Even my own understandings of them change over time. And it gives me joy when a reader sees something in any of them that I have not.

For more in-depth exploration:

-- a brief post about both dreamku and my photos THE AREN'TS OF DREAMKU & ACCOMPANYING DIGITAL PHOTOS.

-- detailed three-part post about dreamku: "A DREAMKU PRIMER: Writing Haiku-Like Poems About Your Night Dreams": PART ONE: Introduction & Writing Dreamku as Dream Work; PART TWO: Elements of the Haiku Form Used in Dreamku; and PART THREE: How to Write Dreamku (the second and third parts have some overlap).

-- a brief up-dating post about the three-part "A DREAMKU PRIMER" -- Important Up-date to A DREAMKU PRIMER....".

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‘til next time, keep dreaming,






If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”). Roswila's other blogs: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL; ROSWILA’S TAIGA TAROT; and TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.