A Poem for My Brothers - Strange Trinity

A Poem for My Brothers -Strange Trinity

At 2 a.m., or 4,
when I am awake and dreaming of you

Have you taken me a picture of where you have been?
Have you written down,
in poetic terms,
the life you have lived?

Will I lose you all eventually-
my trinity turned duo turned four quartets?

scattered like wedding day rice
our new beginnings
our mutual ends
perfect love
platonic and endless

And where will God place you tomorrow?
My sorrow and longing
to see your face amazes me.

It has been long away
from the master of my poetic start.
I, apprentice to the art of life and and art.
You, teachers, with arrogance and truth,
always believing you knew so much,
that we believed it, too.

And I did.

Your magic and art will always be
in your older-brother charm, wit,
Fred Astaire grace,
small g godliness
and calm assurance
that life is to be tasted.

Experience, said the giant man
my blue-eyed Polish Switzerland
who love to laugh and taste of life
and see life through the lens
of art and light
True man.

what I owe you can never be repaid,
never stated, even,
it is too much
Italian Controversy led us everywhere,
laughing, robust, at life,
Politics
and War
all things Mars, it seemed,
in this realm of men.

Would I ever truly understand life
without you?
Could I ever see this world
through more dynamic eyes than yours?
Could I have seen my own delicacy
or realized to what depths the human soul goes?

Someday there will be women
woman enough
to handle you

And will she have a sister
woman enough to handle Chaos?
The fact is in doubt

Friend, you are the life that breathes into fire.
Whirlwind, uncontrolled
Danger in a Blues Brothers suit.
Brother, hot life breathing
even as you seem to speak
of death and darkness
Untameable
And so I will simply pray
you don't shoot anyone
unless they need to be shot
and that your plot goes unused
for a good
long
time.

Brethren!
As such you are,
every one of you inspires me!

I leave pedestals behind
and keep instead simply friendship's warm glow
to reflect
      the true touch of each on this life.
Each my child,
to motherly instinct
Each my enemy,
to feminist anger.
Each my love,
to wild instinct and matronly desire.
Each my best friend,
to heart, in truth, incessant.
And all of my life
I will hold you so,
No matter where we are.
No matter distance or time away
Always,
Forever,
I love you.

Ilene Danielle Oldham