A writer's journey...

In looking for notes on a book I had drafted, I found a book of poetry written by my great grandmother and typed by my grandmother. Hope you enjoy. This was written by Janet Wickett. When Summer Dies When summer dies, it leaves me drear, On fading flowers I shed a tear. A feeling I cannot define, Haunts me and my spirit pines. When summer dies, abject am I, Clouds of gray obscure the sky. The leaves that fly across the plain, Mould and return to earth again. As though bereaved as a leafless tree, Would that I were a tree, all winter wait in apathy, Content to sleep the winter end, Till spring echoes gently with a song.

Your warmth embraces And makes anew The breeze that carries across your blue Whispers sweet lullabies in my ear My heart beat still  As calm sweeps over my soul My resting place from torment and unrest Here I am at peace Pressing my toes into the wet sand Liberating, freeing Within my soul has found its call To be with one and share with all The gift that lifts from within my spirit Wisps of hair tickle across my face Carried in your loving haste I hear your words as you speak softly to me I'm so vexed sometimes I fail to see Within us lives torture and pain Within your warmth embrace with sanity I now see I take a deep breath and rest in your shadow Trust in it hoping to end my sorrow And as I dip my feet in your blue Minnows gather and a ballet ensues How I wish I could capture their souls And breathe unto me a fraction of their freedom To swim without limit And touch whom I do not know I begin to...

The darkness seeks me And taunts my soul It threatens to consume Taking away all that is good Tainting all that’s true Making me wonder will it ever end The pain and sorrow Aches my bones And strips me of purpose Sometimes in the silence I wish I could succumb And close my eyes one last time But in me there’s a yearning That sees the light Aligning my focus and keeping me aright. For if I ever let the darkness feed The nightmarish emotions Would steal my life Yet crack of dawn Bestirs my spirit Awakening in me a need to go on

There is light at the aperture but the darkness taunts me and pulls me back. It envelopes me and pulls me down. Sinking as if in mire, My dreams and loves suppressed. Suffocating and lonely A tortured soul How can I find the strength to move on. The voices haunt me, the judgement passing, Steal my breath. But deep within I know I must find the courage to soar To leave behind their solemn words. But see to them I must be as they say Conform to their life, And be their way. No love is worth this price to pay For in my depth I know one day The time will come for me to shine to rise above and claim what’s mine. I am liberated as a bird, Rising in the updrafts My plumes reach toward the sky. Liberated I carry on, One step forward, And none behind. One day when I awake, I know I will have found The belief in who I am renewed. The light will embrace me In its warmth And then I’ll know that I’ve come...

When I close my eyes I am carefree Soaring above the world Suspended in flight Unhindered by constraints Liberated from judgment. When my eyes open I am reborn Focused on the horizon Updrafts lift me only higher Soaring, free, liberated. As I rise, my spirit heals Free to be me, Free to believe I will make my destination   Stronger, bolder and ready to fly again.