Monday, February 1, 2016

James Babbs- Three Poems


James Babbs continues to live and write from the same small Illinois town where he grew up.  He has published hundreds of poems over the past thirty years and, recently, a few short stories.  James is the author of Disturbing The Light(2013) & The Weight of Invisible Things(2013).


More Wine

I gave her more wine
and refilled my glass
we were getting comfortable
she said
I dreamed about you last night
oh I said
no she said
not that kind of dream
oh I said
no she said
it was you and your mom
and I think
your father was there
but I couldn’t really see him
I said hmmm
and gave her more wine
you know she said
I never got to meet your dad
I said yeah
it kind of makes sense then
I gave her more wine
did anything happen?
I asked
no she said
not really
I emptied my glass
filled it up again
I laughed
what’s funny?
she asked
I said oh
I was just thinking about
the dream I had
oh she said
yeah I said
let me tell you about it
I gave her more wine
I took a drink from my glass


Some Blues Last Forever

some blues linger for days
the shift in gravity
nobody sees

some blues are given names
and have songs written about them
for anyone to sing

some blues have arms
long enough to
wrap themselves around me
they hold me tight
never wanting to let go

some blues grow heavy
clinging to me
the weight I must carry
through the lonely days and nights

some blues take time
like a fine wine
like poetry
death
dressed in black
and smiling

some blues last forever
the sky
the color of her eyes
the feelings I get
long after she’s gone


She Never Told Me She Was Getting Married

when I called her that morning
I was feeling kind of lonely
I hadn’t talked to her
for a long time and
I was really hoping
I could see her again
I asked her
if she remembered me and
she said yes
she knew who I was
but she told me
she was kind of busy and
she’d call me back later on
I said okay and
we ended the call
she never told me
she was getting married
I heard about it
several days later and
I thought it was kind of funny
well
I hope she’s happy
now


2 comments:

  1. All three were interesting poems. I felt I was
    watching it all unfold. Excellent writing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Speaks to us reality in awareness of his language.

    ReplyDelete