Ankle High

I dance the drumline,

the steady beat of surviving

pulsing through legs

mud etched by a river scream.

There is hell in high water

fighting the Jesus strength

to see another tomorrow.

I breathe cries, the steady moan

of desperation, the death howl

raking hope I’ll ever reach solid ground.

Breaking through the horror

I hear a camouflaged Gabriel

crying, “Keep walking, your feet

can carry you beyond the water line.”

This mud sludge apocalypse

demonizing water has been eager

to write my obituary, but I’m crossing

into the ankle high salvation of an angel horizon

shining with the warmth of two reaching hands.

©Susie Clevenger 2017

Real Toads ~ Play It Again

For Play it again I chose Fireblossom Friday: Arrivals and Departures

As many of you may know I live in Houston. Hurricane Harvey (tropical storm for us) has caused, well, hell in Texas. My family and I are safe and didn't experience flooding. I wrote this poem for those who had to take the treacherous water walk to safety. The photo at the top is Dawn looking out Lake Houston where we live. The song is one my daughters, Dawn and Carrie, wrote around a year ago, but rerecorded it in my kitchen after the worst of the rain passed. 

It is hard to explain how we felt or how we feel now. Perhaps this will give you some insight. A friend of mine, Dr. Donna G Hughes, who is a psychologist states it this way.