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tears are private things
meant for coat pockets
on a Wednesday morning

they fray edges
and stain fabric
i pull at them
until i lose my way

if they were breadcrumbs
only the birds would follow.



copyright/all rights reserved Audrey Howitt 2015



posted for Poets United Pantry

Comments

  1. oh that opening line, "tears are private things"
    is such an acutely honest assessment!

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  2. The opening was strong and what followed was even stronger. Thanks.

    Greetings from London.

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  3. Beautiful and felt, Audrey. Happy New Year to you and yours!

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  4. felt it
    good luck
    http://imagtalks.blogspot.com/

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  5. This piece is so concentrated, distilled, that it seems to me to reflect the flash of a mood, a moment of anger, despair, abandonment. We hope these pass into other moments and other feelings. I enjoyed experiencing this one.
    Steve K.

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  6. tears are private things, and we never know when they will flow. In any given moment something could trigger that first drop and then the rain comes.

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  7. This is very poignant. I love the idea of tears as "private things, meant for coat pockets on a Wednesday morning...." Perfect.

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  8. It is so moving to think about tears in coat pockets. We do keep them close to us, don't we!

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  9. The first line really moved me... somehow I think that's how we keep our sorrow... tight like pearls... like treasures... yet they burn.

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  10. What an amazing poem from beginning to end....deep sadness felt here...

    'i pull at them
    until i lose my way'

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  11. I love how you chose the image for your piece here. Instead of a person's tears, it's of the morning dew. such beautiful thoughts.

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  12. Love these lines
    tears are private things
    meant for coat pockets

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  13. I love that the speaker says so much about privacy, about the shaping nature of crying, about how only does who are really affected by them can really find them...

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    Replies
    1. Wow, beautifully written and said. sometimes tears when noticed can be noticed with empathy by others and not just birds.

      gracias....your profile on the sidebar is quite interesting

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  14. The opening verse is sheer perfection..a unique image and wording that seems to make perfect sense when you think about it - perhaps birds can offer a more honest song than people? Although yes..the loneliness and sorrow cries out

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  15. Tears of sadness or of joy are undoubtedly private matters. But they get equal treatment when one unashamedly let emotions get the better of us. By doing so the world gets a dose of it and they are no more private in many instances. Wonderful write Audrey!

    Hank

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  16. This is lovely. Yes, tears are private and I love how you express this so beautifully.

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  17. Tears express our deepest emotion and are difficult to share.

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