THE WORLD THREATENS TO SPIN APART (photomorph) & HARD TIMES (night dream) by Roswila

HARD TIMES

the lovely, much younger blonde professional
woman gives me a book she’s read and thinks
I’ll enjoy and benefit from; something is odd
in her manner, as if she’s not fully disclosing
her motives; I’m not upset about this but I am
curious, so as she walks away, I begin fanning
through the book for clues and discover notes
in the back margins in what I presume is her
handwriting; one of which says “p.p.t. = use
female salutation;” somehow I know one of
those p’s refers to me, “Patricia;” based on a
gut feeling combined with other penciled
notes about different folk, I realize she’s a
psychotherapist and had sensed my barely
felt, much less expressed need for her to
make herself available to me; oddly enough,
I don’t find any of this disturbing as I would
usually when anyone makes any sort of
assumption about me; to the contrary, I
welcome her interest, and especially the
tact of it: I know all too well I could use
a wise woman* to talk to right now


[on a dream of 3-13-19. *wise woman (from internet) = “The term "wise woman" usually refers to a folk healer or midwife, often in the context of pre-modern European peasantry. A wise woman can be a type of witch…” Some modern-day witches use the terms interchangeably. A bit of research I did on “p.p.t.” may have some relevance to this dream: “PPT is a file extension for a presentation file format used by Microsoft PowerPoint, the popular presentation software commonly used for office and educational slide shows.” Hm, it just hits me that the other dream I recall from this night is about (among other things) going to school. Guess my dreams are urging me – at least in part -- to get on the stick and “back to school,” ey? Photomorph “The World Threatens to Spin Apart” (5-2-16 003v2g[2]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

TEEMING (photomorph) & FINDING MY BOY (night dream) by Roswila

FINDING MY BOY

pride in this young physically handicapped
boy of mine rises; even after the years
he’s been with us, I am surprised at how well
he does being completely independent; but
of course, I still worry and, more so, wonder
exactly how he does it and am happy to have
a social event as an excuse to travel with him
on his daily bus trip, up to school at the spit
of this island; not wanting to hover over him
as I know I might, I deliberately arrive a wee
bit late to the bus stop, just in time to watch him
board the rickety, old-timey wood bus; he hauls
himself up the steps readily, nimbly handling
backpack and his nearly useless left leg; I board
almost right after him, it’s crowded inside
and as I stand at the front, I can’t see him
anywhere; I look around noting the well-cared
for but ancient roll-down bamboo slat curtains
on the large square windows neatly opened at
half-mast to let in the daylight; adult riders
begin to move toward the front door as we’re
approaching the next stop, and I’m relieved
as now it’ll be a bit easier for me to hobble
back in the bus to find my boy; the rear seats
and aisle are even more crowded than the front
had been, and entirely with kids headed for
the last stop; and there my boy sits, squashed
happily among other noisy, unruly boys who
are clearly his good friends; he smiles brightly
on seeing me, making my morning; nay,
making my day, as he’s made every day
of my life since his birth


[on a dream of 3-13-19. This was influenced in part by the coming of the March 22nd birthday of Matthew -- a boy who could not have been more my son if I’d birthed him -- who was killed just before he turned 15. He died over 30 years ago, but I will always love him. Although I may not think of Matthew every day, he’s never far from welcome recall. As I have said many times about his death: I am grateful for the short time we had him with us. As to meaning in this dream for me? It seems I may need to “go back to school” in some way, that there’s more to be learned and not just with respect to Mathew’s short life and times. I also wonder at the association I have to the ending of this dream, a yearning I have more and more these days: to find that which will make my days again. Oy! It just hits me! In a way I have an adult (kinda, sorta 😊) Matthew in my life now. I need to be more overtly grateful for him. Photomorph “Teeming” (3-22-16 006v3[3]) by Roswila; I did considerable editing of this pic, but it wasn’t until I was posting it that I realized I’d taken the original on Matthew’s birthday, March 22nd three years ago]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

WHAT A MESS! (photomorph) & GETTING THE BUGS OUT (free verse dream poem) by Roswila

GETTING THE BUGS OUT

we all dine eagerly from the floating casserole

I walk up to the air stream it’s flowing from
for more and … oops! are those little
dark things bugs in the mix?

yikes!
I think they are … and were they
in there when we all dipped
from the trough?!!

uh, maybe they’re just bits of spice?

nah, no such luck, they’re bugs

… damn, Dad did this to us once,
served us buggy spaghetti and when
I found out and called him on it,
he laughed … well, I said, maybe
you won’t laugh so hard
when I throw up on you!


[dream of 3-12-19 in response to request before going to sleep “What do I most need to do tomorrow?” My list of to-dos was rather extensive. 😊 So, I think this little dream’s answer is that it’s most important I be very careful what I swallow. Both literally and metaphorically speaking. BTW, the Dad memory is an actual one that I recalled in the dream. Even those several decades back I knew (and tried to deny that) this incident was a nauseating but accurate metaphor for my experience of life in my family. Given that, the dream may be emphasizing that I’m being expected to swallow (i.e., believe) a lot of buggy stuff these days. As I typed that I thought that I may be the one promulgating some very questionable beliefs about myself/my life right now and taking them as true. I learned all too well how to do that from a very early age (as we all do to a certain extent). I should also note that I was vaguely nauseous all day after this dream and not hungry. The nausea is not all that unusual, but the lack of hunger is. As if I wanted to very carefully control/limit what I would eat/swallow. This dream may also have been prodromal (communicating about a physical issue); i.e., I may have had some sort of digestive upset going on of which I was not aware. Another BTW: I again affirmed before going to sleep (on 3-13-19) that I would remember my dreams and I did. I have two clear dream poems in draft form already. Photomorph “What A Mess!” (8-17-18 008v14[2]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

AN AFFIRMATION OF TREES (photomorph) & "the purple bastet..." (dream tanka) by Roswila

the Purple Bastet
of the Endless Golden Way
shimmers in the air,
briefly, like her legacies
that also keep falling to dust


[tanka based on a dream of 3-11-19. As far as I can find out, there is no Purple Bastet of the Golden way in mythology. That’s my dream creation. Though there is, of course, Bast/Bastet, the Egyptian Lioness Goddess. And the Golden Path in spirituality, often associated with Buddhism. The color purple? Here’s a huge mouthful from the internet on its possible symbolism: “Purple combines the calm stability of blue and the fierce energy of red. The color purple is often associated with royalty, nobility, luxury, power, and ambition. Purple also represents meanings of wealth, extravagance, creativity, wisdom, dignity, grandeur, devotion, peace, pride, mystery, independence, and magic.” I should be remiss if I did not mention that purple also happens to be my favorite color. 😊 BTW, for all the puzzle of the mass of symbolism in this little dream, it felt all too real, too sad, but with that welcome bitter sweetness that some sadness has. Photomorph “An Affirmation of Trees” (6-5-09 1837v4a[3]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

DIGGERS (photo) & A TWO-FER (two dreams) by Roswila

A TWO-FER

Buried Alive

“They’re burying that old woman up to her neck
in the sand,” I yell in a panic to everyone around;
as I do, I note the leader’s a dark-skinned woman
in a long flowing white robe-dress, and realize
that she and her cohorts are proselytizers; they
are leaving only the woman’s head above the
sand they’re packing loosely over her, the
woman beneath the dry yellow mound
curled in a fetal position; I yell again
about this burial to no one’s interest,
much less actual response; not even
the buriers themselves acknowledge
my alarm, but they do start walking
away from the beach area with the
woman they’d been burying,
the dark-skinned woman
giving me one decidedly
sly backward glance


The Sweet Man

he looks so different!
almost an entirely new man,
and all he did was get a really
short haircut; I also notice a small
piece of chocolate pushing its way out
of his belly button and tumbling away;
I approach him telling him how handsome
he is with his new haircut and point to the little
piece of chocolate in his lap, noting where it
had come from; he appears both embarrassed
and pleased as he tilts his gaze toward his
navel: another little piece of chocolate’s
begun to extrude; he’s very surprised,
and I’m glad he can see that I’m
not blowing smoke up his butt


[two dreams from the evening of 3-11-19. I’d gone to sleep insisting (in the way of affirmations, i.e., again and again) that I would remember my dreams clearly. And boy, how-dee, did I. Which is encouraging. My dream recall has been sketchy for quite a while now. I’d done research some time ago as to what happens to it in old age, and a decline is not uncommon. But that just set me the challenge not to give up on -- if not improving dream recall -- at least slowing, even stopping the decline. BTW, there are a few other dreams in addition to these two, one I may post tomorrow. Photo “Diggers” (10-18-17 018v2[2]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

CROWDED OUT (photomorph) & "they all really like..." (mixed format dream poem) by Roswila

they all really like
their long-time receptionist
maybe that’s a clue:
nah, even my own family
never truly liked me

duration makes no difference
except to a growing level of pain

instant or long time,
whether by self or by other:
unliked remains unliked


[tanka followed by a two-liner and a dreamku on a dream of 3-10-19. Sigh. I’m a bit p.o.’d at my dream world for this. I went to sleep asking for help and essentially got my nose rubbed in a part of the problem that’s been cropping up in every one of my gazillions of memory moments these days. BTW, there’s a preachy tone to this piece that I find annoying in my writing sometimes. But, so be it, that’s the tone that permeated the dream. Hm, or maybe the tone my ever so vaguely lucid mind brought to the dream as I was dreaming? (Lucid dream: one in which the dreamer is aware she or he is dreaming.) Photomorph “Crowded Out” (1-18-18 006v4a[4]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.

NO WAY OUT (photomorph) & "she belittles my pain..." (dreamku pair) by Roswila

she belittles my pain
he mashes me under the table
family dinner

they muffle it all
I exaggerate in order
to be heard


[dreamku pair from April 16, 2008 (re-posted 3-10-19, with slight tweaking of second ‘ku). A dreamku is a form I developed many years ago to accommodate what I was trying to do with my dream writing. Best way to describe a dreamku simply might be to call it a kissing cousin of the haiku form, as that is what it is based in. This is not to say I was the first person ever to use the haiku form with respect to night dreams. Just that I allow for subtle, and some not so subtle diversions from what is usually considered a haiku. Photomorph “No Way Out” (7-7-09 3479[2]) by Roswila]

PLEASE NOTE: in most browsers you can click on the above image for a larger version. Also, the photo accompanying a post is not necessarily meant to illustrate it, but to reflect some small, even slant aspect of the verse, similar to Japanese haiga (illustrated haiku).

There are many other sorts of posts on this blog. I indicate which are about or influenced by dreams. Some non dream focused posts are book reviews, "regular" poems (some by other writers), scifaiku, writing exercises, Tarot haiku, photos, haiga, and so on. However, most of those are in much older posts. There's a listing by month going back to early 2006, at the end of the sidebar.

* * * *

until next time, keep dreaming,





[a/k/a Patricia Kelly]
**** 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 blog (dedicated to her photos only, i.e. no poetry or other writing; daily post); TRYING TO HOLD A BOX OF LIGHT.