Blue Mountain Arts Poetry Contest

Gathering Words
by Gareth Caldbeck

THirtieth Contest
Honorable Mention

You have begun a long and difficult journey.
You will pass by sunsets and moonlight,
hills and valleys,
fields and colors that bring you to Fall.

You will feel a kiss,
left for dead long ago,
now moist and wanting more.
And you will miss the warmth
of every body yours ever touched,
or dreamed of touching.
You will remember rejection
and relive every acceptance.

You will revisit neighborhoods,
and neighbors,
friends and enemies, successes and failures.
Your dreams will leave blossoms on your pillow.

You will open the doorways
to every home in which you’ve lived,
and search through every room
for the stories made behind them,

and you will come to those rooms
whose doors you locked long ago,
and you will open them
to see what has changed...

And in the end,
slowly,
you will gather words,
some laden with dust,
that move all of this to someone else,
who will understand.

You are, after all, writing poetry.

About the Author
Gareth Caldbeck resides in Naples, Florida and has published four books so far, including a most recent book of poetry, all available on Amazon: 1. "Words to Remember, Mine and Others, a Journey Through Words that Will Inspire, Entertain and Empower You; 2. "Tell Me Another One" A book of Stories with life lessons; "Granddad's Stories" A book of original children's stories wherein "pictures appear when you close your eyes!" 4. "Gathered Words" (a book of poetry).