A Woman's Question (Excerpt) - by Lena Lathop

Do you know you asked for the costliest thing

Ever made by the Hand above?

A woman's heart, a woman's life -

And a wonderful woman's love. 

Do you know you have asked for this priceless thing

As a child might ask for a toy?

Demanding what others have died to win

Win the reckless dash of a boy. 

You have written my lesson of duty out,

Manlike, you have questioned me.

Now stand at the bars of my woman's heart,

Until I shall question thee.

You require your mutton shall always be hot,

Your socks and your shirt be whole;

I require your heart be true as God's stars

And as pure as heaven your soul.

A king for the beautiful realm called home,

And a man that his Maker, God,

Shall look upon as he did on the first

And say: "It is very good."

I am fair and young, but the rose may fade

From this soft young cheek one day; 

Will you love me then 'mid the falling leaves,

As you did among the blossoms of May?

Is your heart an ocean so strong and true, 

I may launch my all on its tide?

A loving woman finds heaven or hell

The day she is made a bride.

I require all things that are grand and true,

All things that a man should be;

If you give all this, I would stake my life

To be all you demand of me.

What Poets Taught Me

Poets from years and ages ago
Combined with melody peaceful and low
Speak to me through ink a page
A page that will speak to yet another age
Of stars in the heavens, and all beauty behold
By eyes who take time to seek out the old.
See uplifted arms of tree's wind-swept dance
Straining skyward in praise as their leaves prance
See for the first time eternal growth
With childlike wonder and unquenchable hope.
It reveals the one Breath that created good earth
Breathing forever into its blessed birth
Still firing awe in my heart to this day
Restless, searching, yearning for the Name.

Hold on to the message unwritten,
Hold on to the unspoken rhyme,
The truth is often hidden,
The wise find it only through time. 

A Dental Extravaganza

I had cavities filled for the first time last week, three of them to be precise. Being my first time, I was rather scared about having to have novacane being shot into my mouth. After swabbing the one side of my mouth with gel, I closed my eyes while the dentist fiddled away in there. I opened my eyes to see the back end of a ginormous, 10 inch long syringe slowly injecting novacane into my head. It looked like a skyscraper from my perspective.

After shooting up the right side of my mouth, the dentist declared that it was unnecessary to numb the other side. Until he started drilling, that is. With the tooth on the unnumbed side being attacked first, I wondered if the other two would hurt as much. The dentist's comment at that point was, "That's deeper than I expected." You don't say. :P After several eyebrow grimaces, the dentist saw I was in pain and switched to a laser instead of a drill.

The other two went much more smoothly, and I was out of that chair in less than an hour. Being unable to smile, I sent a half-faced grimacing smile to the lady at the front desk as I left. As Mark would know, I sounded odd talking on the phone later that day, and laughing hurt my cheek, so I attempted to laugh without smiling. It was quite an experience. :)

Let It Be Forgotten - A poem by Sara Teasdale

Let it be forgotten as a flower is forgotten, 
Forgotten as a fire that once was singing gold,
Let it be forgotten forever and forever;
Time is a kind friend; he will make us old.

If anyone asks, say it was forgotten,
Long and long ago,
As a flower, as a fire, as a hushed footfall
In a long forgotten snow.

-Sara Teasdale

DONE WITH SOMETHING

I just finished a paper. Actually, it was a character essay that broke just over four pages. It's a loathsome thing to do school in the summer, and I am rejoicing as I type that I am FINALLY, at least ONE step closer to freedom. :P When school ends, which will be soon, but not soon enough, you will know if you're the type that is amused by taking walks at night, because you'll see me walking on the moon.