Black Dress Confidence [liz]
Put on that black dress confidence
Stroll about this town of abundance
Forget the doubting words that find you
When sleep becomes elusive as the dew
Take all your worry and weight
Throw it in a bag before you’re entangled in hate
We’ve got a mountain to climb
Though it cost more than a dime
It’s time to wade through the grime
And fight up to the top of the lime
Like a runner beside the morning’s tide
Catch your breath and find your stride
There’s greater strength in gentleness
If you’ll show it in your countenance
With compassion to your right
The burden you lift passes into light
thanks for being a woman, Liz. don't think i ever would have thought of writing something with the image of a black dress the way you did.
ReplyDelete.fav.
"Take all your worry and weight /
Throw it in a bag before you’re entangled in hate"
I love when you say that there is more strength in gentleness..
ReplyDeleteThis is great. Splendid imagery.
Employed a little more rhyme than your Alone in a Crowd reading, eh? I like it.
ReplyDeleteThe last stanza was my favorite, but I also like the title phrase.
I liked the title line, too.
ReplyDeleteThree different stanzas, with at least three distinct images ... it's hard to pick a favorite. I like the way they move from darkness through effort to light.
hey liz, last stanza is definitley my favorite, i love the image of the runner
ReplyDeleteYou make me want to write poetry.
ReplyDeleteLoved the last stanza and especially:
There's greater strength in gentleness // If you'll show it in your countenance
Hey Liz. Don't know you well, but I'm going to be forward to enough to say that I feel your femininity shining in this piece. Love the road from dark to light. The mental picture of a woman on a long run in a black dress is fantastic.
ReplyDeleteLiz--this is great! My favorite part is: "like a runner beside the morning's tide/catch your breath and find your stride"
ReplyDeleteIt made me think of a gentle but strong wind coming in off the ocean, making you breath in and giving you energy to run. That feeling of invigorating refreshment--that feeling of "black dress confidence". So good!
Just reading the first few words, "black dress confidence" conveys an image that makes me want to throw back my shoulders and charge forward.
ReplyDelete"the burden you lift passes into light" I love this because a) a burden is not light but can become light with the right perspective and b) the light of peace and joy and purpose absorbs the dark burden. Great imagery!