At Jingle Poetry, we were asked to write about AMBITIONS. Having just moved to a new city and state (state of mind as well as geographical), I’m ALL ambition this week! Enjoy, Amy (PS What a month to move to Madison, WI! Super Bowl champs, but most importantly – no one was seriously injured. Amen.)
Making it Home
Boxes unpacked
Stuff sorta stored
Cat comfortably curled in
his new niche
Even the throw rugs and
coffee paraphernalia
have found their place
Pictures yet to hang,
but that takes
time
thoughtful placement
and permission from the wall
to be pierced by a nail
But until tonight,
as we snuggled in the delicious intimacy
of true lovers,
jigsaw pieces in a perfect fit,
this apartment was not Home.
(c) 2011 Amy Barlow Liberatore/Sharp Little Pencil
Sharp Little Pencil 
ladynimue
Pictures yet to hang,
but that takes
time
thoughtful placement
and permission from the wall
to be pierced by a nail
totally adorable lines .. wow .. what a thought …
Sharp Little Pencil
You and Ramesh are thinking in tandem, so I’m including his link for that reason! Will do the same for him re: your blog.
Thanks so much, nimue. (Finally figured out that you prefer lower-case name!) Peace, Amy
Kim Nelson
Ah, yes. Consummation of time and place are vital. Now the living can begin.
Sharp Little Pencil
You got it, sister! To every person their own space-claiming ritual… and yes, the living has begun indeed. Lex is very happy with his new pastorate and I’m still hanging pix and unpacking boxes. Unbelievable how much of this stuff got moved and still had three boxes for the AmVets to sell! Amy
Jingle
But until tonight,
as we snuggled in the delicious intimacy
of true lovers,
jigsaw pieces in a perfect fit,
this apartment was not Home…
superb poetry, you rock, girl, thanks for linking.
A++
Sharp Little Pencil
Bless your heart, Jingle, and thanks for the inspiration! Amy
pamela
Amy it will be soon, nicely said:)
Sharp Little Pencil
Pamelita, it’s here, except for a few unpacked boxes and bare walls. Still thinking and re-thinking the space allowed for pix and how to get my faves up without cluttering. Decided to rotate pictures from a box occasionally to freshen up the view! Amy
azfree
Have you ever noticed how the cat always seems to settle in first. It’s usually a good sign of what’s to come! Lovely poem.
Sharp Little Pencil
Like I told someone else, it’s all about Gable’s comfort. Nothing else matters… to him. He now has several niches and a couple of true hiding places when he wants to make us look for him. What a hoot. And I agree, a good omen! Thanks, az. Amy
Fay
You are a sharp little pencil indeed. Very nice.
Sharp Little Pencil
Wow, went on your site, Fay, and you are a ball of fire! So extra thanks for this compliment. Left comments… see you soon! Amy
liv2write2day
Madison is beautiful! My grandfather graduated from the U in 1908! Enjoy your move and settling in.
Sharp Little Pencil
It’s still beautiful. Wow, 1908? The wonderful thing about this town is that the city planners resisted the urge to relocate the University to the suburbs, as so many growing colleges did in the 60s. So downtown is vibrant and filled with students, while downtown Buffalo and Binghamton, etc., are largely wasted. I am enjoying the nesting, I must say.
Sherry Blue Sky
So lovely. With a great partner, Home is wherever the two of you are………loved this poem:)
Sharp Little Pencil
Ain’t it the truth, Sherry? But still, the mountains of boxes, etc., were hardly conducive to “the mood,” wink! Thanks so much, A
Strummed Words
Nice ending completes the poem.
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks so much! I always strive for the best cup of coffee to end the meal…
Ramesh Sood
Amy,
I loved the lines;
Pictures yet to hang,
but that takes
time
thoughtful placement
and permission from the wall
to be pierced by a nail
Wow!!! so very thoughtful.. and believe me walls always trust and give permission …hoping to get adorned with beautiful art.. so the pain is accepted.. don’t we do this, quite often..accept pain.. trusting.. oh, Amy , the thinker in me always flows at just a hint of inspiration..
And thank you for you lovely comments on my 200th..
Sharp Little Pencil
Ramesh, 200 postings is something to shout about!
I heard once (believe it or not, in a movie, “Under the Tuscan Sun”) that the way to move into a house is slowly… introduce yourself. So the personification of the wall, the thought of asking it, “Is it OK if I drive a nail?” seemed right. Thank you for your affirmation.
Accepting pain is indeed one of the hardest challenges, and yet, once we do it, the pain is set free and so are we. We learn to trust… I trust more than I should sometimes but have never regretted it, since even when it leads to painful moments, I learn. See, it’s all cyclical, right? Peace, Amy
Sharp Little Pencil
Incidentally, if you want to read a poet who picked out exactly the same quote for exactly the same reason, try my friend nimue.
Nanka
I’m glad that you have finally settled in a home filled with all that you love. 🙂
Happy you got your coffee paraphernalia and your jigsaw puzzles are all in place. I had loved your earlier poem on the packing and now this settling.
Good one Amy!! 🙂 I enjoyed it!!
Sharp Little Pencil
Nanka, many thanks. I so enjoy your work and appreciate your noticing the continuum. As for the jigsaw puzzle, as you can guess, that’s me and Lex… (blush)
hannah
I love the thought of asking the wall for permission to be pierced by a nail. And I agree that a house isn’t a home 🙂 Have fun in Madison!
Sharp Little Pencil
Already having fun, Hannah! And the permission line seems to be the winning phrase of the month… so far! (lol)
Thanks for visiting. So glad I found your blog, too! Amy
Debbie
Such a beautiful expressive love-ly poem! 🙂 And Amy, there is a new little Christian Journal just started, in case you are interested. She is seeking submissions . . .maybe you would like to send her something? 🙂 You can find it here at: http://idyllsfortheking.wordpress.com.
Still am amazed at how much you write and how good it all is!
Sharp Little Pencil
Debbie, thanks for the suggestion! I wonder if my spiritual writings would be found acceptable in the mainline Christian press. I mean, I’m a radical in so many ways… but I can always submit, and I never mind rejection letters, so I guess I will give it a go! Thanks for the link, hon. Peace, Amy
Tilly Bud
I really enjoyed this, especially ‘permission from the wall/to be pierced by a nail’ and the lovely final stanza.
Sharp Little Pencil
You are the third person to mention the permission part, and I have to ask if you’ve seen “Under the Tuscan Sun” (the movie – I found the book rather boring). Frances Mayes speaks of introducing yourself to a new dwelling, and that’s where the inspiration came from. Thanks, Linda! A
Tilly Bud
No, I haven’t seen it; and I must say your review convinces me I never will. 🙂
Sharp Little Pencil
Yeah, sounds about right! Amy
fiveloaf
love ties it up like a birthday cake! here’s my potluck in case you have not read~ http://fiveloaf.wordpress.com/2010/03/12/broken-home/
Sharp Little Pencil
I’m so glad when folks whose work I don’t know yet supply a link. I try to do the same…
Thank you for the birthday cake reference! And yes indeed, it was chocolate cake with chocolate icing!! Amy
trisha
lovely, warm and full of love. a love nest in making.
http://mydomainpvt.wordpress.com/2011/02/07/free-soul-7th-feb-2011/
Sharp Little Pencil
I stopped by your blog – WOW! Amazing stuff, so thank you for stopping here! Peace to you and yours, Amy
woih
very happy the cat is comfortable. congrats on the move.
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks Dennis. Yes, the cat’s comfort is so much more important than ours! That’s why I took three days in a rental car, staying at cat-friendly hotels, to make the trip easy on Gable. By the time we landed at our new home, he was almost disappointed: “What? Isn’t this another hotel? We’re not going anywhere?” One trip to the vet will cure that, no doubt! Amy
Emmanuel Ibok
Wow…cute poem. I enjoyed the climax at the end.
Bless!
Sharp Little Pencil
Climax, ha ha ha, you sly one! Loved writing this, Emmanuel, glad you liked it! Amy
Rhyme Me a Smile
Beautiful words. I hate it when home doesn’t feel like home.
My Potluck Poem: Mood Rings of the Future
Sharp Little Pencil
I’ve had so many homes over the years; this was my tenth full-family move and I stopped counting the single-person moves at 30! That’s what happens when you are a musician, I guess… Thanks for the link – will check yours out. Amy
Deborah
Wonderful lines and a wonderful poem … I know you’ll fill the space fit to burst with all of you and your love and energy and be calling it home very soon x
Sharp Little Pencil
It’s shaping up nicely. Best part? Getting rid of all the collective dreck of the past give years, which sat and sat and contributed nothing – all has gone to the AmVets, where hopefully someone will find value in these objects. One person’s trash, truly another’s treasure! xxoo A
booguloo
At least there was a good balance in the last verse!
Sharp Little Pencil
Michael, finding balance in any of this mess is a victory! But finally yin and yang met, and the most important part of moving in did happen, so yay!
Kavita
Oh.. I hear ya, Amy!!! THE move tends to take a toll on one’s nerve at times… heheh
But it’s so so exciting!! And it’s these tiny mini-goals of setting up the place that become super high-priority 😀
Love it, lady!! And best luck on the new place!! I wish for you to make some lovely memories here as well….
(hugs)
Sharp Little Pencil
Kavita, you are a love. Thanks for the encouragement and good vibes! I just found some important pieces of glass today – old found cobalt-blue bottles that I use to catch the light. Some days, I could just stay home and gaze through the glass all day… it makes me feel better during bouts of depression!
Yeah, Madison is a wonderful town. So much cultural activity, some diversity – not like NYC, but enough so I don’t feel like I’m living inside a loaf of Wonder Bread, heh heh.
Peace and hugs, Amy