Time for Some #BlatantSelf-promotion a/k/a #TootingMyOwnHorn #Excerpt

/ Marcia Meara

It’s Friday, and I have no guests today, not even Granny, so I decided to try something I seldom do: a bit of bold and blatant self-promotion. Today’s horn tooting features one of the poems from my book, Summer Magic. This time of year always makes me a bit emotional, hence the poem I’ve chosen. Hope you enjoy it!

Promises

Up we climb again, My Love
On yet another autumn day,
Our trail meandering, higher, higher,
Amidst October’s blazing glory.
The pines are dressed in mossy green,
And glowing maples shed flaming leaves,
Keeping us brilliant company
Under the blue silk sky.

Remember our first time
Climbing this trail?
My God, we were young, and
Filled with each other!
You held my hand, and urged me on.
Wait until we’re there, you said,
Just wait! You’ll see it’s worth the climb.
And it was, My Love.
Oh, it was!

We stood at the top,
Locked in warm embrace,
Our hair, whipped by the wind,
Our hearts triumphant.
Gazing across the rolling hills,
Your radiant face was lit with pride,
As though you had created
All this wonder
Just for me—a wedding gift!
A thing of splendor our hearts shared,
Over and over, every autumn.
Our place. Ours alone,
As though no other lovers
Ever climbed this way.

Years and years ago, it was,
That first ecstatic, heavenward climb.
Yet here we are once more, My Own,
Returning to this ancient spot.
Proving some things do prevail—
Deepest faith, and promises
Sworn in love
Abide,
Just as the land before us does,
Rolling on into eternity.

Take me back, you begged,
Back to our mountain.
I will, My Love, I swear it.
I will.
And here we are.
I’ll keep my promise. No tears today.
But oh, for another smile, another kiss!
Another chance to see your face,
To touch your cheek, to hold your hand.
Gone by so fast, like wind-blown leaves,
All our precious hours and minutes!
But didn’t we use them well, My Love?
Oh, yes! We used them well!

My heart in pieces, I let you go,
And watch as you drift away,
A swirl of grey against the blue.
Your soul soaring, riding the wind,
Then settling lower over the valley,
As you become one
With our hills.
And someday, My Love, my only love,
You’ll feel my soul come drifting down,
To rest with yours once more,
Part of the earth in this sacred place,
You and I, together.
Forever.

Thanks for your indulgence today, but brace yourself. I might do something similar again from time to time. Turns out tooting your own horn now and then is fun!Ā 

Download Summer Magic HERE

34 thoughts on “Time for Some #BlatantSelf-promotion a/k/a #TootingMyOwnHorn #Excerpt”

    • Thank you so much, Jeanne. I’m truly glad you enjoyed it. It’s probably the only “sad” poem in the collection, though I do include some aimed at being “touching.” The first half of the book is about MacKenzie Cole (from Wake-Robin Ridge) as a ten-year-old boy camping in the mountains with his father. It’s definitely filled with life from the perspective of a young, exuberant boy, and hopefully a lot of fun. The second half runs the gamut on … well … Life and Love. šŸ˜„ And I’m in the mood for putting together a new book of poetry, now. We’ll see if I can make that happen.

      Thanks for stopping by today, and taking a moment to comment. I appreciate it very much! šŸ˜€ ā¤

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  2. I love this collection in all its variety and moods. They all touch me one way or another and this one is beautiful and perfectly captures the love and the loss of a lifelong kindred spirit. The accompanying picture is stunning. ā¤

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    • Thank you so much, Trish! I’m so glad you enjoyed Summer Magic (and hope you’ll be ready for a new collection in 2022, if all goes well). And I’m especially glad that this poem touched you. Your comments on it are just what I was aiming for. Also, glad you like the picture. There’s a reason those North Carolina mountains are my favorite place on earth. (So far, though it’s hard to imagine anywhere else that could reach inside my soul like these ancient hills do.)

      I appreciate your stopping by and taking the time to share your thoughts with me. You’ve made the morning brighter, for sure! šŸ¤— šŸ’–

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    • Well I know for sure what the Blue Ridge/Smokies/Appalachians mean to me. And it’s been way too long since I was last up there! Those mountains take my breath away, with the ancient, rounded shapes rolling into the distance, and waterfalls around every other curve in some places. So beautiful and peaceful … and OLD.

      Glad you liked the poem, Janet, and thanks so much for taking a moment to let me know! šŸ˜€ ā¤

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    • Thank you so much, Gwen. Such a lovely comment! And I think I will do more of this now and then, especially when nothing else is happening, and it hasn’t been a busy week. More poems, and maybe even the occasional excerpt from one of my books now and then, too.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and letting me know you enjoyed this one. I love how you described it! šŸ¤—šŸ’–

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    • I did try to make it say a few things … like that they were loving couple for many years, and that she kept her promise, and that she has faith she’ll join him one day. I have on other poem in the book that I’d call sad, but for the most part, I focus on the happier moments of life, and the beauty of our world.

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Jan, and taking a moment to comment. I appreciate it very much! šŸ˜€ ā¤

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    • Thank you so much, Darlene. I’m really glad you enjoyed it, and that you’re looking forward to me sharing more. I suspect I’ll probably do a little of that in the months ahead.

      Thank you, too, for stopping by today and letting me know your thoughts! šŸ˜€ ā¤

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    • Aw, thanks, Teri. So glad you liked it. I suspect most of us don’t toot our own horns as often as we should, but I’m going to try to do so now and then in the months ahead. It reminds me of why I like to write, so that’s one benefit right off the bat.

      Thanks for stopping by and taking a moment to tell me your thoughts. I appreciate it, and “bittersweet” is a perfect way to describe what I was striving for. šŸ˜€ ā¤

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  11. I guess you sort of warned us that we’d need tissues for this one, Marcia. But yeesh, I needed a whole box. I’m still dabbing my eyes. Heavens to Betsy, that was beautiful and moving. Holy Moly. Well done, my friend. I have this book in my kindle and really need to get to it. I’m so glad you did a bit of self-promotion. Do it any time. Hugs galore. ā¤ ā¤ ā¤

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    • Thank you so much for that wonderful comment, Diana. I’m sorry I made you cry, but then again, I’m glad the poem touched you that deeply. And I do think I’ll be sharing more excerpts going ahead, but hopefully not so often that it gets boring or predictable.

      I can’t wait to hear what you think when you get a chance to read Summer Magic. There are things in the second half precious to me and a bit biographical, along with a variety of other topics. And the first half is all about the fun of seeing life through the eyes of MacKenzie Cole when he was a boy Rabbit’s age, and looking at the world with that sense of joy kids that age carry inside.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a moment to let me know your feelings on this one. You’ve made my morning! šŸ˜€ ā¤

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