ETERNAL AND INFINITE
by Scott Thomas Outlar
Loki’s Ammunition
Sometimes we must
set the book aside
for a moment,
exhale a deep breath,
and exclaim,
“My God, that’s what a poem is!”
No whitewash on the crescendo
where it all went to hell.
No handbasket to carry
your broken mirage of thin clichés.
Wear your wounds well,
ripped, torn, tattered, shred,
and sip my blood
from the stagnant puddle
of pride and regrets.
There is passion in the words
exchanged between lovers
when the arrow is initially shot,
but there comes a second death
when old letters are discovered
on dusty shelves believed forgotten.
What hand penned such thoughts
from the head rush of sweet amore?
It can’t be dubbed a lie
if it felt like truth in the moment,
but even the most sincere hearts
can sometimes be fooled
by trickster gods
on the prowl.
Let Others Fool Around with Stones
Techniques, styles, comparisons,
critiques –
I listen to others
discuss the work
of their contemporaries
or that from the canon
I tune in with interest
to such discourse
and perhaps
even nod or shake my head
but rarely will I ever
opine on such a subject
because in the end
it has no bearing
on the words I write
Thoughts about ghosts
are about as good as a mirage
and as far
as running my mouth
about the writing of others
I’d rather stay mum
and tend to my own
Hemorrhage
Dark in the belly of hunger
A way out
of the whale
waiting in slumber
Watery wombs and tombs
between us
Winter masks/summer shades
quiet desperation
Holding our breath
as lungs fill/collapse
The final fall
hits (hurts) hardest
Black in the night of no moon
A new taste
of the silence
promises of smoke
Eyes with specks and beams
that blind us
Autumn tears/springtime gasps
ring hollow
Biting our tongues
as blood flows/fails
The ancient smile
slips (snaps) loudest
Eternal and Infinite
Are those stars
or the headlights of a car?
O my dear,
we are all just deer
staring at God.
About the Author:
Scott Thomas Outlar hosts the site 17Numa.com where links to his published poetry, fiction, essays, interviews, reviews, live events, and books can be found. His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. Scott was a recipient of the 2017 Setu Magazine Award for Excellence in the field of literature. His words have been translated into French, Italian, Dutch, Persian, Serbian, Albanian, and Afrikaans. His radio show Songs of Selah airs weekly.
