Me, You, Music

Watch me
kiss me
let me
make music
with you
transcend
the sound barriers
explode
the ear drums
beyond repair
can you
hear me
as your heart
speaks
to me its
melodious
inciting a dance
of palpitations
frequent and fervent
this song I recite
and commit
to memory
permanent
engraved
binding
the love
engulfs the spirit
that forever connects
to you and your opus.

Published in NUMBAT Western Austrialia Poetry Journal Issue 2, May 2008.

Soul Mates

Like infrared lights
I can see you in the darkness.
In a crowded room,
we speak with our eyes
secret conversations,
if they only knew.

My arms are weak
yet strong enough to
carry your burdens and
combat your insecurities.
Your body is hard
but like an over-stuffed body pillow
you catch me when I collapse.
And on days when I pick the scars
and re-expose life’s painful memories
you reach deep inside my
chest cavity and caress my bleeding heart.

Our connection is profound,
multi-dimensional, transcending the natural.
Drowning in turbulent waters
my buoyancy is you, your life jacket is me.

Hiding behind a Fictitious Name?

My favorite, favorite, favorite artist, Beyonce Knowles, recently unveiled her stage name, Sasha Fierce, with the release of her latest album, “I Am...Sasha Fierce.” Sasha Fierce, Beyonce’s performing alter ego, shows her more outgoing and sensual side. Beyonce has been reported by Ananova.com as saying: “I have someone else that takes over when it’s time for me to work and when I’m on stage. An alter ego I’ve created that kind of protects me and who I really am. Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken and more glamorous side that comes out when I’m working and when I’m on the stage.”

Of course there’s been a lot of buzz about Beyonce’s alter ego, Sasha Fierce. I’m not sure why, because she’s not alone. Writing under a fictitious name has been a very common practice since the eighteenth century, when writers and journalists used pseudonyms to pen controversial or even illegal articles and letters to the editor. It’s still common practice today for actors and artists to use fictitious names (e.g., Eric Bishop as Jamie Foxx). And it’s just as widespread for writers, who sometimes choose to write under a different persona as well -- pseudonyms or "pen names" (e.g., Stephen King writing as Richard Bachman).

Like many artists, I, too have a pseudonym, Sage. Like Beyonce, when I write under the name, Sage, I am bolder and less inhibited. However, unlike Beyonce, it’s not an alter ego; instead, it’s a way to make my name more distinctive. More importantly I am free from preconceived notions, assumptions, stereotyping, etc., as my race and gender are disguised. But I am open to judgment -- of my words and craft, which I always welcome wholeheartedly.

Friday Favorites...

This Christmas By Chris Brown

Christmas Reflections

The frigid snow
chills my aching body.
I can’t get warm,
my heater is shoddy.

Yet, I sit and reflect
as the holiday nears,
it’s not about money or gifts
or Santa’s reindeers.

My steady outlook remains
despite the inclement weather,
I’m flying high, soaring free
Blissful…light as a feather.

As I think about Christmas
my spirit shines with glee,
I laugh. I smile. I am thankful.
Jesus died on the cross for me.