Comments on: Invitation to Poetry: Closing Doors

By: Tom Delmore

Tom Delmore — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:06:42 +0000

The word not should follow could in the poem

By: Suz

Suz — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:48:17 +0000

I left the church
When they painted the door red.
I was about nineteen
And “The Blood Of Christ”
Seemed gory and violent
I didn’t want that bloody image
To reflect on me.

I’m in my fifties now
I still read the Book of Common Prayer…
That old one from 1928.
I like the sound of “thee’s and thou’s”
And I tolerate the harsh words
Of the General Confession.

I call myself Congregationalist
And I love this church of peace and liberation
That honors all people
Fights for the rights
Of the poor and gay and black
And worships a Lord of Life.

But even still
When the world seems harsh and frightening
When I am anxious or aching or alone
I sink inside myself
And recognize there still lives
The little Episcopalian.

By: Sue

Sue — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 08:34:38 +0000

Thanks everyone for these. It was a wonderful read.

By: Pam

Pam — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 22:50:33 +0000

Christine…. I thought I still had time to “enter” the contest today. Oh, well, I still put my poem in, even though the last few lines keep telling me that they are not quite done.

The door to dreams

Years ago,
I tried to lock my dreams
behind that door.

No more dreams,
no more hopes
of a life together.

But they must have
slipped secretly underneath
to follow me on the winds.

I tried to put time
and distance between me
and any hope.

It was important
to walk away and
let the dreams chase me.

As I peered through
other shaded windows,
my heart kept turning to you.

So, when the door opened again,
I knew these dreams were
too much a part of my being

… to be denied.

By: wendy

wendy — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 09:03:58 +0000

Hi Christine,

This gathering really spurred some reflection, such a good theme youve brought up here : )

I posted on it, here
http://matthewsixtwentysix.blogspot.com/2008/07/musing-table-on-closing-doors-part-one.html
but unfortuneately its pretty long. So you might want to just qoute a piece of it maybe?

Peaceful week to you : ) Wendy

By: Steve Newcomb

Steve Newcomb — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 02:56:24 +0000

What’s behind yours?
Is it the monster under your childhood bed
Or that scary movie that won’t leave your head
The shocking story you saw on CNN
The face of Bin Laden with an evil grin
A miscellaneous box of guilt, regret, and sorrow
A past you can’t replace, steal or borrow
The thought of that thing that has no cure
Fear of your memories becoming a blur
Maybe it’s good times you want to keep near
Like that special someone you love so dear
The first time you went camping in the dark
Riding your bike with friends through the park
The crazy nights you spent being wild
Or is it the memory of the birth of your child
The individual reasons are too numerous to list
Or it’s all the above in a confusing mist
We all have one for these reasons and more
All I ask is……
What colors your door?

-Steve Newcomb

By: Rich

Rich — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:48:36 +0000

Ah, my muse has helped me break through yet again. Thank you, Christine.

THE RED DOOR

I’m lucky,
you see,
I see,
the red door
we all live with.
Only thing is,
I’m no better off,
in figuring out,
whether
to enter
or exit.

By: ymp

ymp — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 23:45:19 +0000

Christine,
Loved the concept and really loved the other submissions. People went so many amazing ways.

Not my ways

I knelt in prayer
to ask the question
which ought to be asked
so sure of the answer
this was a good thing,
for me, for the Kingdom of God
it wasn’t too easy
it wasn’t certain death
and so I raised up my question
and my hopes
so sure of the answer
only to hear something else
the rattle of a door not only closed
but locked too
a different answer which
opened doors for other people
and kept me where I needed to be
for my own self care
and I learned that
the ways of God
are not my ways.

By: Nichol Newcomb

Nichol Newcomb — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:33:26 +0000

Please don’t knock
I am away
I’ve gone on vacation
I need to play.
My mind is resting
My mouth sealed shut
Kicked back and relaxing
Firmly planted on my butt.
I cannot be social
Today is about me
No phone calls, or chatting
I’ve no place to be.
So if you come calling
The reds all you’ll see
I’ve gone on vacation
With no one but me.

~Nichol Newcomb~

By: Kievas Fargo

Kievas Fargo — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:57:44 +0000

I see a red door and I want it painted black
No colors anymore I want them to turn black
I see the girls walk by dressed in their summer clothes
I have to turn my head until my darkness goes

Paint It Black, The Rolling Stones