Death and Morning

By Richard Atwood

DESTINY

Our lives are shaped
by who we love...

(how it goes,
or doesn't)

if in the dark
no one's voice is near

because of this
and only:

Sand, wind, time, waves.

Between the corridors of Los Angeles and Denver - the crush
of night, the stark of day - love and loss are as present as the
deserts, mountains, valleys, and canyons we veer through...
rivers or trails crossed...people and places missed or touched.

Deciding who to love, or even how - is not an option. Either one
does, or one doesn't. Even the best of choices can fail, the best
of plans can go awry. This is the story of our lives. To know the
difference between death and morning is the secret of life. There
is only the doing or the not doing. One must be led by the heart,
the mind, the spirit. And one's God. Without these, surely we will
break.

Death and Morning was the Poetry winner for the Los Angeles Book Festival, 2011-2012, and the 2012 beach book festival. It was also a winning Finalist in the 2012 International Book Awards.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Feb 10, 2011
• ISBN: 9781450271363

Richard Atwood

Born in Baltimore; raised in York County, Pennsylvania, served in the USAF, with tours in Greece, Turkey, and Germany. Rick has lived in Los Angeles and Denver; currently in Wichita, Kansas. He has also authored two other books of poetry, three screenplays, and two epic stage plays, plus several songs.

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DEATH AND MORNING

by

Richard Atwood

iUniverse, Inc.

Bloomington

Death And Morning

Copyright © 2011 Richard Atwood

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4502-7134-9 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-7135-6 (cloth)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-7136-3 (ebook)

Printed in the United States of America

iUniverse rev. date: 2/3/11

For you…

whomever.

Contents

ONE

DEATH AND MORNING

SORROW

CARRION, OR CARRIER

MESSAGE

FROM AGONY INTO SURPRISE

LOVE

TWO

WOULD YOU CALL IT WAR, MY LOVE?

LOVE’S EYES

OUT OF LOVE…

POEM*

POINT

AFTER

LOVE SONG

LINKAGE

AMONG THE ANIMALS

SUDDENLY, (BUT NO SURPRISE)

IS THAT ALL?

ENCHANTMENT

separation

chance..

LILY

THREE

MIDNIGHT, AUGUST 4th

MADNESS, PEACE, THE INEVITABLE

Come

FOR LOVE, ONLY

poem

THESSALY

TELL ME YOUR EYES

LOVE’S LETTERS

THE LAST TIME

LETTER: MARCH 8th

SHE

MICHELLE

FOUR

ANSWER

BIRTH

TODAY, TOMORROW, YESTERDAY

OCTOBER 7th

IF, I WOULD GIVE YOU

LOVE’S GOODBYE

MIK

FINALLY…

FIVE

DEATHPLACE

HOW ELSE, TO REPAIR?

CONTRARY

TO THE WAY IT SHOULD BE

KNOWLEDGE

WHAT TO DO, IN CASE OF LOVE?

THE WAY, THE TRUE, AND THE LIGHT

P. S. 165

TRUTH

SIX

WITH EYES LIKE GRAY SATURDAY   [T.]

FOR DENVER, 1969   [T.]

HIT, AND DONE    [T. ]

THE POET

DESTINY

TRANSITION

LOSS

SEVEN

?

A MOMENT, ONLY

THE PRODIGAL

LIFE-BOUND

OCTOBER 18th

PHILOSOPHY

AT LAST

LOVE AND LOSS

IDENTITY

JOURNEY

ON FINDING A STRAND OF HAIR IN A BOOK

EIGHT

GAY…? HELL!

BLUE, GREEN, AND GOLD

FIRE FROM HEAVEN*

MYSTERY

DIARY/LOS ANGELES: JANUARY 31st

REAL/IDEAL    [B.]

fragment…    [B.]

WITH ONE, AND THINKING OF ANOTHER  [B./B.]

WHEN WAS THE LAST [B.]

NINE

SUNDAY MORNING   [G.]

MORNING, AGAIN    [G.]

MONDAY, 6 A.M   [G.]

LIFE IS NOT

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THE ONE YOU LOVE?

TEN

A YEAR AND SEVEN MONTHS LATER

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS & NOTES

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

AUTHOR’S STATEMENT: (as a committed Christian)

Interior_Death&MorningCovers,Byron 5-26-10 007_20101013013732.jpg

ONE

DEATH AND MORNING

It is here… quietly. The no-sound.  

The hammer of clocks, the sharp stillness  

going under.  

Love  

has taken you away. Has given you up.  

Has slashed the wrist, burnt the candle,

broken the last kiss.  

And  

there is no peace…. No more, after.  

Only the vague