I wrote something new!

It's been forever since I wrote something new. This poem, entitled "Once", was inspired by a lost friendship that I was contemplating today.

Once

Once we
talked, laughed, shared secrets,
fought, cried, betrayed,
forgave, supported,
and, most importantly,
loved.

Now we just don’t.
Any of it.

Which used to hurt,
much more than it does
n(N)ow(.)
I can watch your life in picture stills
as it continues without me.

Because as time unfurls
the hole in my heart
grows smaller
as others come alongside
to fill the void left by
your silence and apparent apathy
of what once was.

(It was worth fighting for, you know.)

But the bitterness subsides with time,
the pain dims,
and I can be happy that you’re happy,
even without me.

Once we shared life together.
Now we just don’t.

I wish it was different.
But it’s not.
And so I move on,
thanking God that I have friendships for today
and that
once,
I got to share a part of my life’s journey
with you.

good books

Some fantastic books I've read lately:

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
The Stand by Stephen King
The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb
I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (currently reading this one)

If you're looking for a great read, just pick up one of these.

bad books

I haven't been having a lot of luck with the books I've been choosing to read lately. First, The Lost Symbol was a huge disappointment; now, I'm reading The Weight of Numbers by Simon Ings. It looked so intriguing and like such a cool concept... not so much. It isn't what I expected and the gratuitous graphic content (both violent and sexual) is certainly not something I need to read. I'm all for difficult content IF it serves a purpose; after all, life is full of difficult things. But when it's just there for "entertainment" purposes, I have no use for it. That is not the mark of a good writer. I'm ALMOST inclined to put this book back on the shelf (or better yet, drop it off at a pawn shop) without finishing it, but I keep hoping it will get better and I really have a hard time not reading a whole book. It's one of these books with various plot lines, (different people, settings, and time periods) that all intertwine somehow and somewhere along the line. So I'm hoping for a brilliant connection of all of them at some point, but I'm not holding my breath. I sure hope the next book I choose is better than these last two... Any suggestions?

On another note, I can't find my signed copy of Margaret Atwood's Oryx and Crake and it's starting to stress me out. I vaguely recall lending it to someone and making her (or him?) swear to guard it with her or his life, but I have no idea who that was. Any chance it was you?