At We Write Poems, we were asked to write about a safe place, a refuge. Sometimes the best refuge is actually more like a foxhole or a bomb shelter… not necessarily bringing comfort, but warding off the enemy who is ever seeking out the vulnerable.
HIDING
When you go to bed,
always keep the covers tucked in
and lie face down between two pillows
with the sheets pulled up over your head,
hands clutching the top seam in a death grip.
He’ll never find you there.
© 2011 Amy Barlow Liberatore/Sharp Little Pencil
Sharp Little Pencil 
Debbie
I loved this one dearly, Amy! 🙂 I’ve found that it works pretty good too. ha!
Tilly Bud
Okay, now I’m officially creeped out.
Sharp Little Pencil
Wrote you an email, Linda. Thanks for getting it. Amy
Mariya Koleva
I love it!
Funny, the Wed prompt at Poetic Asides, was an isolation poem. I took that path. They seem similar, though.
Best!
Sharp Little Pencil
Mariya, I went to your blog and commented there. So good to hear your poetic voice again! Peace, Amy
jabblog uk
Excellent! ‘hands clutching the top seam in a death grip’ – how many times have we all done that?
Sharp Little Pencil
Depending on our fathers, some an awful lot… unfortunately. Others, only with the occasional thunderstorm or being sure there was a monster under the bed! Thanks, J. Amy
Sherry Blue Sky
Powerful stuff! My bed is definitely my safe place, I return to it each night with such pleasure! Good poem.
Sharp Little Pencil
Sherry, I rejoice in your good fortune. Thank God you had good parents, is all I can say. Love, Amy
Kim Nelson
He never will. But just in case, firmly grip the top elastic of your J C Penney panties in your clenched left hand.
Sharp Little Pencil
He’s been dead for 20 years and I STILL sleep with covers over my head. Childhood terror never far from today… but thx for the advice. And how did you know I shop for undies at JC Penney?! Now that’s just plain eerie! Thx, Kim. Peace, Amy
poetcolette
You’ve captured the fear of the child here. Well done, my friend. I hope you are adjusting well to your new surroundings. You are probably having a blast! 😀
Sharp Little Pencil
In the middle of major political uprisings over the Guv’s attempted cancellation of collective bargaining – major union/Mother Jones/workers’ rights stuff. Unpacking boxes, still. Cat waking me up at stupid o’clock for unscheduled foodies… hey, life is GREAT! There’s even a Sundance theater here with all the amenities. And now the thaw (for t he moment) is revealing sidewalks I didn’t know existed. I love Madison, love Lake Edge UCC and their people. Yeah, babe, loving it all. Thx! A
Debbie
Oops . . .sorry Amy. I should never comment first, not knowing things others do! I thought “he” was the boogie man, imaginary. Not real. So sorry.
Sharp Little Pencil
No need to apologize, ever! He WAS the boogie man. Just in human form. Which blog says something like, I write how I write, you read how you read? It’s all valid, Debbie!
Love, Amy
leesis
oh sister…this be a painful one with its punch at the end. Well written
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks for this, Leesa. It’s hard to share that kind of memory, and yes, sisters always… peace, Amy
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ladynimue
I used some lines from your poem here :
http://ladynimue.wordpress.com/2011/02/28/some-words-just-fitmarch-1-5/
thanks !
Sharp Little Pencil
Wrote on your blog how flattered I was that you used a line from one of mine… really, the ultimate compliment. Thanks so much for brightening my day with this, and it turned out great! Peace, nimue… Amy