ROBERT STANHOPE
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Bury The Emotions

4/30/2015

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Broad shoulders collapse
Under a guilty burden
Too weak to hold
A mountain of mistakes.

An avalanche plunges
Down a steep slope,
Snapping the trees
In your forest of friends.

Piles of rubble
Anchor your feet
On an island
Of solitude.

You bury your emotions
That must flow freely
Like a pristine stream
To a sea of opportunities.

Raise the sails while
Praying for wind.
Set your course
To brighter days.
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My Secret

4/29/2015

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Can you keep a secret?
I’ve kept one for years.

This secret is mine.
I own it.

I’m not willing to share
With anyone.

My secret is vaulted
In my heart.

My best friend, my wife
Might have an idea.

She might catch me
Thinking about my secret.

She might observe me
Daydreaming, lost in my secret.

She’ll now wonder,
What is his secret?

If she asks,
I’m not sure I’ll share.

I have only one secret.
This secret is mine.
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Our Mother Matters

4/28/2015

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Our Mother
Covered in toxins,
Weeps for a cleansing.

Her skin, dry and cracking
Thirsting for love,
Moisturizing and rejuvenating.

A rising fever,
Melting away
Her patience.

Fading fast,
She’s crying out,
Warning her children.

Storms are brewing,
She’s lashing out,
About to release her fury.

She won’t go
Without fighting.
Her world matters.
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Looking Back

4/27/2015

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A mirror reflects,
Without prejudice,
The storms we’ve weathered.
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Swagger

4/26/2015

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He  walked into the bar,
Ordered Jack and Coke,
Threw it back,
Turned,
Assessed the room,
Blondes, Gingers, Brunettes,
The young, the divorced, the widows.

He nodded at his attraction,
Shy, naïve, and inexperienced,
Walked over to her,
Shoulders back, strutting tall.
Stopped, looked into her eyes
“Let’s dance,” he said
Grabbed her and  danced
Body to body for the tango.

Twenty years of marriage,
He had always believed in
Love at first sight.
The night in the bar
Affirmed his confidence.
She’d only seen his swagger once,
In a bar, walking into her heart,
A Clark Kent romantic.
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Delicate

4/25/2015

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I found your face in the clouds over the Atlantic.
Rosy cheeks provided by a setting sun.
I heard your voice in the gusty wind,
Blowing through the English Channel.
Your heart throbbed in the distance,
As lightning struck in a brewing storm.
Your footsteps clogged across the deck
As the ship moaned in the surf.
I survived knowing the hallucinations
Would be replaced by your loving embrace
On firmer footing near the edge of a cliff.
I hoped to hear music in the air as
We sailed into port at King’s Dock.
I hoped to see you smiling and waving
At a sailor soggy and groggy from a
Fishing expedition that nearly took my life.
To my disappointment, our love wasn’t
Strong enough to withstand absence.
You found another suitor, a replacement
For a man that said he would return.
My heart forever broken,
My love never ending,
I still see your face in the clouds,
A reminder that beauty shines forever,
Yet love is delicate in nature.
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Where I’m Meant To Be

4/24/2015

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After sliding on my sunglasses,
I tip toed through the powdery white beach sand
To the Gulf shoreline,
Gazed at the tropical blue waves
And smiled.
I had found my peace.
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Farewell To The Man From French Lick

4/23/2015

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There was a man
From French Lick.
He could shoot.
He could pick.

Near perfection
From the line,
On the fast break
He played so fine.

Born a Hoosier,
Basketball was his game.
He wore #33
Bird was his name.

The voice of the Celtics,
A legend named Most,
Knew Bird’s game,
Never one to coast.

The day he retired,
I turned off the t.v. set,
An era was over,
One I’ll never forget.
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Plug-In To Nature

4/22/2015

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Nature is calling,
Not on a smartphone,
Not with Skype,
And not with Facetime.

Nature is calling
With fresh air,
Miles of open trails,
And brilliant sunshine.

Paddle a kayak
Down a sleeping stream.
Take a vivid pic
With the blink of your eyes.

Scale the face of a mountain,
With a white knuckle grip.
Celebrate your selfie
Overlooking a densely forested valley.

Go for a therapeutic walk
Along a soft sandy beach.
Receive an instant message
From the tweet of the seabirds.

Blog your relationship
With the great outdoors
After you lie in a tent
Gazing into the Milky Way.

Unplug from the gadgets
Connecting you to a wired world
Filled with visual noise
And life’s dramas.

Plug in to a world
That’s not complicated
To follow or like.
Plug-in to nature.
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Reflections of Me

4/21/2015

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I’m just a man
Living a simple life
With basic needs
And minimal desires.

I’m just a man
Watching the sun rise in the east
And setting on the western horizon -
The moon lighting the evening sky.

I’m just a man
Walking on a trail of shells
To a blue-green shoreline
Just so I can smile.

I’m just a man
Writing notes on a tablet,
Constructing sentences and paragraphs
For a story of innocence and heartache.

I’m a man in a mirror
Staring at my likeness,
Seeing on a stranger
Holding a pen and pad of paper.
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<<Previous

    Robert Stanhope

    Writer and photographer.

    Robert's poetry, short stories, and flash fiction are inspired by the commonly overlooked dramatic and comedic moments of everyday life. He
    has been published in Of Poets & Poetry, The Daily Drunk, Haiku Universe, and numerous motorsports trade papers, magazines, and news websites.

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Robert is available for freelance travel photography. Based in Florida near an international airport.
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