ANN KESTNER
★ ★ ★ ★
POETRY
Painting Her Away
He strips mauve wallpaper.
He never really liked his mother.
She was a large petalled flower
never found in nature
made of plastic.
She was a decoration
with no devotion.
He scrapes away
the outdated design
she left behind.
He sands the rough walls flat again
rolls on a coat of primer
makes a blank canvas of her house.
He prays the new owners
will paint her memory away.
If I Die
If I die tonight
know that I listened to a lot of damn good music.
I had amazing soul bound friendships that went
deeper than molten lava blood. I loved bolder
than lightning strikes across the street at midnight
and my heart out lasted my bones.
If I die tonight
I will drift on the frequency of a perfect melody
and stay eternally linked as a good ghost
carrying my friends through the pain
holding them up from the inside
with my love that never subsides.
If I die tonight
know that I am not leaving.
Ann Kestner is the founder and editor of the online literary journal Poetry Breakfast. For over 25 years her poems have appeared in various journals. She is the poet in residence at the Poetry and Arts Barn in Cream Ridge, NJ where she hosts a variety writing groups and poetry readings.
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