thoughts/musings/poems/rhymes
Ren's Haiku for Susan
More than fifty years
Seeing you across the room
My heart still races
~ Ren Snyder
(5-7-5 syllable pattern composed sometime in the
early part of the 21st century. We used it for our day
sponsor stint for National Public Radio)
or we used;
We're celebrating the annual renewal
of Ren's marriage agreement in which
Susan would look into the camera
or speak into the microphone
and declare:
"He's on a one year renewable contract!"
GLOW Ren Snyder
We made the decision
To pair up
For life
When we were still teenagers
It was, I think, even before...
Before... we ever...
Before... I'd been invited
Before... We were...
Sitting in a car in her parent's driveway
She wearing blue jeans
(Levi's would have been her brand at the time)
Moved to shake a cigarette from a pack
No, it may not have been her parent's driveway as I think back
We were still young and mostly following rules
Sneaking behind our parent's backs
To smoke cigarettes together
She went to shake a cigarette
From a partial pack
And one dropped
Between her thighs
I watched it and I watched her
She retrieved the slender cigarette
From it's resting place
And I never will forget
She held it up
And looked at me
And slightly smiling said
Maybe you'd like this one
And I loved her then
And I think back
And it still makes me Glow
Inside
WHEN MIDNIGHT MEETS THE MOON Ren Snyder
She Said,
Do you love me for my body? Or do you love me just for me?
(Oh Damn, I thought, Whatever I say will come out heresy)
When time turns back and inside out, When midnight comes at noon
When camels pass through needles eyes, When Christmas falls in June
Do I love me for your body? Mind and soul how shall I rate?
(I've learned when ever all else fails it's best to obfuscate)
What kind of man do you think I am? Some shallow insensitive brut?
It's feelings and companionship, Not some partial substitute
When lion suckles with lambkins, When rivers all run dry
When black is white and up is down, When diamonds grow on vines
I'm not in it just for sex, Nooo, there's so much more for me
It's sharing and caring and being close, That keep thee dear to me
When chickens soar like eagles, When skunks yield sweet perfume
When beavers put on roller skates, When buzzards tweet sweet tunes
It's not merely curves and scents, The shape of breast and thigh
The thought of ripening promise that dance inside my mind
When swallows curse Capistrano, When water flows uphill
When fire burns from ice cubes, When gravity stands stock still
Do I love you for your body?!?
Hell Yes!! And I always will!
IT'S ALL
WELCOME HERE Ren Snyder
Life is mystery, More dance than fight
I’ve learned to dance and I claim the right
To sing my song, and shine a light
And it’s all welcome here
I never had one evil thought
‘Least not one I couldn’t lie about
Life is better when the truth comes out
And it’s all welcome here
Sometimes I live inside my head
Tell my stories and live in dread
Thinking I’ll just trust my thoughts instead
And ignore those feelings
I get scared and play it small
Curse myself, say ‘Curse It All!’
Feeling ‘Not Good Enough!’ at all
And that’s all welcome here
Sometimes I go grandiose
Like mine is biggest and I’ve got the most
Like I’m Father, Son and Holy Ghost
And it’s all welcome here
Then a voice says in my ear,
You don’t matter, no one cares
You’ll never fit in anywhere
And that’s all welcome here
I get triggered, I get trapped
Can’t see the gold just see the crap
Don’t know what to do ‘bout that
But it’s all welcome here
I feel happy, I feel sad
I feel shame and I get mad
I feel scared want to run and hide
‘Just seems to happen, I don’t know why
I get triggered, I get shot
I get hooked, I get caught
In a sticky web of should’s & ought’s
Running ‘round my mind
Strange and odd, Can’t figure out
What these feelings are all about
‘Know it’s best to bring them out
And they’re all welcome here
‘Played my cards close to my vest
Only showed what I thought showed best
Kept secrets buried deep inside my chest
I had my reasons
Life is mystery, More dance than fight
I’ve learned to dance and I claim the right
To sing my song, and shine a light
And it’s all welcome here
I’ll share my heart out on my sleeve
And what I’ve learned and I believe
In the long run Love trumps fear
And it’s all welcome here
And it’s all welcome
It’s all welcome
It’s all welcome here
Call it in Let it out
Love and Fear are what life’s about
Sing a song Shine a light
Dance and Cry Claim the right
In the end it’s Love that wins
And it’s all welcome here