Deborah Downes Poems

At the very moment of being
the doom of death is born
Yet we strive to deny this birthright
and it incenses us to survive
...

You are a brilliant patchwork of people, wearing their imperfections with pride
not ashamed to be different.

Like a jagged concrete and glass tiara surrounding an emerald heart
...

Unkempt dreadlocks and threadbare suit
he enters the subway car with confident stride
The smells of neglect clear a path for him
as though he were a king.
...

As I bask in the aftermath of our love, the first tendrils of doubt insinuate my thoughts
so recently filled with elation.

Ever subtly, they take hold of my heart and wrest it from its safe harbor
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Me, myself, and I
Do not consider why
It’s you that I deny
My conscience bears no weight.
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Wild beasts of prey
sought to mangle and slay
those souls who believed
and to one God did pray.
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I stare at the television news....
Assaulted by violence
Stunned by the inhumanity of a Godless society.
I listen to the radio....
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He walked along the garden path
Cloaked in silent beauty
And His soul screamed out in agony
As He struggled with His duty.
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Between black and white, right and wrong, war and peace
lies the gray zone, the blurred line, middle ground, limbo
No boundaries between good and evil, moral and amoral, thin ice and solid ground
No safety net to prevent us from slipping into extremes
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Salted sweetness and sticky smoothness are sensations
That fill my mouth with memories of
Briny beaches on a summer’s day
And muddy little hands, gripping a sandwich
...