Honoring Hope Poem by Holly Jamestone

Stuck on the bottom of my shoe like stale gum
Encircling the lamp shades and the carpet imprints
Lining the pockets of my vest like unwanted lint
Weeping beneath the floorboards of my new home

Hanging its presence in the air like unwanted humidity
Scattered among spent leaves on the confused lawn
Trickling down the drain pipe like morning dew
Wilting in all the flower beds that should have been

Surrounding the crown of my head like a broken halo
Interrupting my smile with a lackluster pause
Attaching to my heart like a tightly hinged lock
Preying on my spirit with dark enthusiasm

Stuck on the bottom of my shoe like stale gum
Till I pry it off with a crow bar and discard it into the manhole
Washing its lint and filth and death and confusion and unwelcome scowl
Down the gutter with a fire hose of conviction and renewal, while today