Featured Poems

Pieces of Our Minds

On the border, on the brink,
we shiver like quivering tears
swollen to fullness with distress,
reluctant to spill an excess.

Strapped in delusions
wondrous and weird, we ride
roller coasters of reality
through joy and fear.

On the brim, on the rim,
like balls circling in frustration,
we scramble for thoughts
lost in nets of uncertainty.

Invaded by memories,
peeping, creeping, weeping,
we laugh and cry to the
rhythm of nostalgia.

On the fringe, on the edge,
changing, adjusting, impacting,
we crave compassion in our
search for society’s sanctuary.

by Frances Shani Parker, Author, "Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes”

The video of the author reading her poem can be found here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgRoKDUEOUk

 

The Christmas Tree

Once, there was a Christmas tree, fresh, green, and sweet smelling,
newly cut and brought proudly into a loving home.

But the Christmas tree didn't know that...

And then lights, and ornaments, and tinsel, and candy canes
slowly began appearing on the Christmas tree,
bringing it color, bringing it beauty, bringing it to life,
each ornament a new experience, a new lesson learned.

And the Christmas tree began to feel, and live, and be proud...

And when all the ornaments and other trimmings had appeared on the tree,
and there were no bare spots the Christmas tree was complete,
and it was alive and it shined and sparkled.

And the Christmas tree was content...

But after a while, ornaments and tinsel and candy canes began to disappear,
and bare spaces began to show through the glitter and the beauty.

And the Christmas tree was unnerved and puzzled...

And as more and more ornaments and tinsel and candy canes were no longer there,
and more and more bare spots began to show through,
the tree became aware that there was something very wrong.

And the Christmas tree was frightened...

As time went on, the bare places became more of the tree than the glitter that had been there.
and the tree began to forget more and more of its past glories
more and more of its experiences and the lessons it had learned.

And the Christmas tree began to lose its shine and withdraw into itself...

Then there came a day when there were no more ornaments or tinsel or candy canes left on the tree.
It was bare again, but not so new, not so green, not so sweet.
And it didn't shine and sparkle.

But the Christmas tree didn't know that...

by Alan Holbrook, Age 63, Groton, MA

 

Sun

Warm
Bright
Hot
Light
Different throughout the day.
Orange
That’s a hot container.
I have to bend over the tools
and make it go where I want it to.
Come here sunny.
Like a hot shower or a hug.
Smells like an ocean breeze.
Smells like an orange.
Don’t leave tangerines out.
Sometimes it could be a grapefruit.
Sounds like water dripping over a dam at low tide.
Sounds like light.
Hot as hell.
Hot as the dickens.
Warm as a pussy cat.
The sun at dawn is bright as a new baby.
Even if it’s a girl?
Especially if it’s a girl.
Babies are babies.
Orange.
Sky bright.
I guess I have to wake up earlier.
It may be white.
Tastes like Orange Aide.
The sun at noon is bright as fire.
Lime in a coconut.
Feels like a smile.
Sounds like a kiss.
What about in the summer?
Midday like a burning fire.
Hot, uncomfortable.
Need your shade.
Need yours shades.
And your suntan lotion.
And your air conditioner.
Summer is coming soon.
The sun at dusk it gets redder and redder.
Its going out.
The sun is setting.
Who tastes the setting sun?
The midnight sun is black as tar.
The sun tastes like death.
Who looks out their window for the sun at midnight?
We could look for the moon.
We could chop it up into sections, like an eclipse
the shape of the sun on the moon.
Brilliant minds we ought to turn them on

by the Early Stage Dementia Group hosted by the Hudson Valley/ Rockland/ Westchester, NY Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association.

Submitted by Gary Glazner

Gary Glazner is the founder and Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Poetry Project, (APP). The National Endowment for the Arts listed the APP as a “best practice” for their Arts and Aging initiative. NBC’s “Today” show, NPR’s “All Things Considered” and Voice of America have featured segments on Glazner’s work. Harper Collins, W.W. Norton and Salon.com have published his work. He is the author of How to Make a Living as a Poet, on Soft Skull Press. Learn more about the Alzheimer's Poetry Project at www.alzpoetry.com