Kelly Shackelford- Three Poems

Mama Bear

Rage pointed words maul identity,
peeling away love like a sour
onion sliced open for all
to turn their nose up at.
Worthless trash, my name,

snarled through the clenched teeth

of the proud mama bear.

Packing My Heart

Suitcase
 scuffed
from boyhood
 adventures
 spent chasing
young dreams
of a life yet drawn.
 
Now,
just a boy
shadowboxing
a man’s battle.
I pack
your favorite jeans,
Snoopy PJ’s ,
shards of my soul
scattered
among the toiletries.
 
I mourn.
My boy stolen…
                           … shattered
                                                   … Rehab bound.

(published 2008 in The Old Red Kimono- print issue  no electronic issue for this mag.)

haiku (rockin' rainbow)

electric hues strum
to Mother Earth's band bending
the righteous wavelengths