Rabbit

Broken longing

healed in the eyes

of a tender receiver, blessed

by mercy and the promise of perpetual drink.

Soft, silky warmth beside me

fragile and more precious than

any perfectly-cut gemstone.

Faith once mangled now restored

to a richer glory than introduced before.

Solitude in communion – God inside

a gentle touch, mutual bond and loneliness appeased.

Sweet waters of fate receive me,

my neck is stretched high,

my arms are a basket.

Let the unassuming reign,

place me secure in this place

where the private and the meagre

are honoured, quietly

declared yours.

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Copyright © 2023 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

“The poems included in Allison Grayhurst’s poetry collection Running, lightwave riding reveal an impressive artistic perfection and creative energy. The poems are full of lyrical force and show freshness of style. No doubt, this is a significant work. The poems have great power of observation and originality of imagination,” Dr. Karunesh Kumar Agarwal publisher Cyberwit.net

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Published in “Quick World News” October 2024

https://quick-world-news.com/?p=14544

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Published in “Sahityapost” June 2023

https://sahityapost.com/english/poems/107248/

https://sahityapost.com/category/english/

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First published in “Synchronized Chaos” May 2023

https://synchchaos.com/poetry-from-allison-grayhurst-14/

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You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

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Not a Mirage

       Ambushed, held hostage, then forgotten,

discarded, starved and too weak

to move. I find myself in a dead forest

that was burned by a fire a few years ago –

just sprouts of trees and a few ants trailing

the chewed-up ground.

       I will find a cabin to rest in and get warm,

then find food in that cabin and rejuvenate.

I will not think of them (those who took me)

more than I have to. I will not

devote my energy

to bitterness but fasten myself

to thoughts of a future where freedom

is mine and I am not obliged to sleep

my nights in a mite-infested bed or

pull at my hair-strands

in boredom.

       My burden is unloaded,

my shackles are far away

after so many decades.

It will take commitment to shine

in order to shine, but I will shine.

       Near a country river

I will make my home, remain

tied to a promise like a covenant devoid

of self-pity, return to joy

as though never captured, never broken.

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Copyright © 2023 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

“The poems included in Allison Grayhurst’s poetry collection Running, lightwave riding reveal an impressive artistic perfection and creative energy. The poems are full of lyrical force and show freshness of style. No doubt, this is a significant work. The poems have great power of observation and originality of imagination,” Dr. Karunesh Kumar Agarwal publisher Cyberwit.net

.

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Published in “Fevers of the Mind” June 2023

https://feversofthemind.com/2023/06/05/a-poetry-showcase-allison-grayhurst-june-2023/

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First published in “Raven Cage Zine Issue 79” April 2023

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bSK-i_cdlpdZynz8lH2A4YIlxgyGiub3/view

Click to access RavenCageZine79.pdf

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Published in “Winamop” May 2023

http://www.winamop.com/index.htm

http://www.winamop.com/ag2300.htm

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You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

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Footsteps

of a haunted lion mourning

her lost young. In a cage,

another brow folded in grief

and grim expectation.

Entitlement massaged into the bright blank eyes

of the classless rich with their toothy smiles

and ego-feeding gestures

of generosity.

The lion is haunted, the rabbit

is caged and the mournful dog longs for kinship.

The sacred is devoured but not for long

and not forever

as joy overtakes with one relaxed touch,

one moment of complete enjoyable surrender

where nothing impure

can enter.

That moment is worth poverty, worth

the fevered greed swirling around,

spoiling the atmosphere,

tricking with false kindness and ignorance of self

that leads to chaotic manipulation.

It is worth the penalty of no security

just to combine for a few moments

with another’s spirit, be grand

in such holiness, be humbled

by such rudimentary love.

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.

Copyright © 2023 by Allison Grayhurst

amazon.com/author/allisongrayhurst

“The poems included in Allison Grayhurst’s poetry collection Running, lightwave riding reveal an impressive artistic perfection and creative energy. The poems are full of lyrical force and show freshness of style. No doubt, this is a significant work. The poems have great power of observation and originality of imagination,” Dr. Karunesh Kumar Agarwal publisher Cyberwit.net

.

.

First published in “Raven Cage Zine Issue 79” April 2023

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bSK-i_cdlpdZynz8lH2A4YIlxgyGiub3/view

Click to access RavenCageZine79.pdf

.

.

Published in “Winamop” May 2023

http://www.winamop.com/index.htm

http://www.winamop.com/ag2300.htm

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You can listen to the poem by clicking below:

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