Reach out in the Darkness

(Thanks to 'Friend and Lover' for the inspiration for the title)

When I am alone, at least alone in my mind
everything disoriented and out of place
Carrie Newcomer is my therapist.

When my spirit is chilled, my plans in disarray
I need a voice telling me that it will somehow all work itself out.

Then I turn to the safe place of Carrie’s sumptuous timbre.

When I am feeling despondent and low
hopelessly, deep-down blue
Ann Hampton Callaway is my healer.

When all the colours of my life have leached and merged to shades of grey
I need someone whose Blues are deeper than mine.

Then I seek out the shelter of Ann’s resonant tones.

When I am in doubt about my place in my world
uncertain, perplexed, and in doubt
Rupert Holmes is my comforter.

When I need to dampen the insecurities of life before I’m overwhelmed; 
I need an intelligent reminder that the World is a complex structure.

Then I seek the philosophical libretti of Rupert.

When my spirits need lifting, 
my lungs need filling, and my joy re-ignited
Debbie Friedman is my candle.

When all seems gloomy, my light dimmed; 
I need to experience the sensations and emotions of joined voices and sweet, minor melodies. 
Then I turn to Debbie Friedman to remind me to sing out and breathe in.

When I am lost and need to find my path,

when I need strength for the battle
Patti Cathcart is my beacon.

When my potential seems diminished;
I need Tuck and Patti’s light and inspiration.
Her boundless, untethered scat and Tuck's miraculous fingers are the hallelujah to my prayers.

Words and music, rhythm and voices
the style, the ideas, the perceptions can open the heart and calm the mind.

The resolution of joy and pain, madness and melancholy;
eased in the resolution of a chord.

Ronda R. Scott-Marak
© 19 April 2017

Blue Skies

 "Noticing the days hurrying by"

(With thanks to Irving Berlin... and the 4 musketeers)

I want a new life, a new house, a new world,
a new dream, a new existence.

I want a puppy, electronics and mechanical things that actually work,
and a reality that doesn’t need repair.

I want friends that answer when I call.

I want to smile and to laugh.

I want pain I can live with instead of abiding by its rules.

I want a vacation from worry, a holiday from stress,
free time without demands.

I want a new mattress and comfortable pillows.

I want fresh air, time to rove and nowhere to be.

I want authors and musicians I love to never die,
at least not until after I have.

I want concerts and museums, theatres and galleries.

I want sight-seeing in cities and walking on seashores.

I want health and happiness, and love and joy;

I want “blue skies and palomino ponies”.

Ronda R. Scott-Marak

© 11 April 2017

Easy like Sunday Morning

(With thanks to Lionel Ritchie)

Water soft on my skin, 
warmth soaking into my bones, 
the faint scent of rosemary and eucalyptus: 
silence except for my breathing 
measured and deep, 
eyes shut against the ambient light.

I sink into my mind's world, 
moving pictures behind closed lids, 
and the whisper of sandalwood.

Ronda R. Scott-Marak

©9 April 2017