FromOneLine Anthology

If I Were A House

2022

3 poems

~

If I were a house

made of crystal

I’d show you

the best versions

of yourself

in walls that sing

sweet symphonies.

A sound bath

telling stories

to your soul.

If darkness ever weighed

heavy, light would always

find a way. Even when

the moon is so distant.

I’d make sure that

from anywhere,

the stars that seem

so difficult to reach,

would sparkle

in your eyes.

All I would ask is for you

to settle down, make yourself

at home. All I would ask is

for you to shine.

~

If I were a house over the hill, I’d stand alone,

with my south facing wall licked white with wind.

Weathered. Grounded. The salt of the earth.

Car wheels would spin spin spin

up the hill to reach me. My warm hearth

would welcome them, but just as easily

will them away. Then when all is done,

and I stand alone again, I would settle

into my foundations, close my curtains,

and blow a long sigh from my flume.

~

If I were a house once full of memories – remnants

of rose petals still on the bed, toy cars lined up on

the lounge floor next to Barbie and Ken – I

wouldn’t let cobwebs build, or let rodents move in.

No squatters would take advantage, nor people

trying to buy me for a reasonable price. No.

Light would fill my rooms, no boards could take that

away. And when the flowers and tributes kindly left

outside whittle, or whirl into the distance, you’d

still hear the laughter and cheesy eighties music.

You’s still get whiffs of tacos, jerk chicken, and

fried breakfasts. You’d still wish you were with me

on the patio. A glass in your hand, children running

riot but keeping away from the barbeque.

When the years fly by, and passing tears turn to

smiles, you’d be welcome to pick any flower from

my ever-radiant garden.