Restless Inside
Restless inside…
as a piece of string with not a thing to bind
as a root of a bulb awaiting a frozen Winter’s thaw
as an unwound kite on a flat summer’s afternoon
as a bound umbrella waiting in the heavy stand at the door
as a shell taken up from its water, left to dry on a shelf
as a lock forgotten by years, hidden in layers of dust
as an ocean wave never able to hold the sand in its grasp
as a letter hidden in the crumbling wall of an old Victorian
as a gust of wind personified, exiled to the unseen realm
as a sail-less vessel docked in a cemented harbor
as an etched crystal vase in the cupboard longing for use
as a stream racing downhill when it wishes to climb
as a baby grand piano unplayed, covered with ages of dust
as a drawn curtain wanting to part, allowing rays to enter
as an hourglass wishing to be turned, spilling its sand once again
as a tear unable to escape the confines of its cause
as a heart awaiting to be claimed by its only love…
the now, the past, what is to be
restless for it all, restless to just be…
Nikki writes different kinds of poetries in different kinds of styles, but she often takes an object or image (or in this case a feeling) and eximines it facet by facet diamond-like. The technique is somewhat the same as Big Big Broonzy described for blues composition: "You can take a chair, a box , an axe, anything, a knife ... and start writing a blues from it, Because you can think of the different things you would do with a knife, Take a knife and you could maybe skin a fish, or cut a chicken's throat, trim you toenails or your fingernails. Then you could kill somebody with it too, By the time you think of all the things you could do with a knife, then you got the glues. It don't take but five verses to make a blues, Think of five things you can do with something and that's it." (Of course, it's not really as simple as that, but the masters can make the hard things seem easy.)
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