Keeper of the Keys

By Maria Tucciarone

Have you ever been “locked out” literally or figuratively? Locked out of a dwelling, a friendship, a love, a life? Has someone kept the keys out of greed, selfishness, betrayal, shame, ignorance, insecurity, jealousy, or fear?

Keeper of the Keys addresses these questions while opening the door to rejuvenation of the soul. These sonnets and other poems reflect on topics such as family, death, mourning, war, fame, love, friendship, loyalty, animals, nature, faith, and other subjects. With oftentimes Shakespearean-esque snark, many of the poems herein highlight the author’s passion for iambic pentameter, acrostics, innuendo, and puns. A few sonnets pay homage to her literary hero, the Bard himself. As you delve down the rabbit hole into the intriguing world of poetry, may this book be a key to unlock your heart and mind towards processing, healing, tranquility and peace.

Other titles by Maria Tucciarone include In Shakespeare’s Shadow and Broken Birds. One review stated: “In Shakespeare’s Shadow would best be enjoyed with a nice hot cup of tea, while Broken Birds would better be read with a shot of whiskey.” So nestle in, chose your drink, and get lost in rhythmic, illuminating verse.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trafford Publishing
• Release date: Mar 28, 2024
• ISBN: 9781698716732

Maria Tucciarone

Maria Tucciarone is the author of a collection of sonnets: In Shakespeare’s Shadow. Broken Birds is her second book of sonnets. Broken Birds resonates with keen imagery and intense emotion. Her pungent language and caustic humor is sure to strike a chord with any reader who has been laden with a broken heart. She has peppered in a few felicitous sonnets to give the reader a reprieve from melancholy. As in her first book, her love for puns, acrostics, double entendre and innuendo will intrigue the most sleuthful reader or wordsmith. As a former English teacher, Maria Tucciarone once again shares her passion for iambic pentameter and includes an acrostic sonnet, a nod to her literary hero, William Shakespeare. Her poetry has received Commendation in the 2009 Margaret Reid Poetry Prize for Traditional verse. She resides in Richmond, Virginia with her husband and two children.

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Copyright 2024 Maria Tucciarone.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by

any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or

otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

ISBN: 978-1-6987-1672-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6987-1673-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2024906226

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Indeed, a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.

Matthew 10:36

There are companions ready to crush one another, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24

"You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories.

If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better."

Anne Lamott

"Though those that are betray’d

Do feel the treason sharply, Yet the traitor stands in worse case of woe."

William Shakespeare

Contents

Foreword

1... You were with me when I took my first breath ~

2... The animosity loomed in the pews

3... They waited outside his door every morn

4... Your rigid piety served you not well

5... The supple grass was once green, fresh and sweet ~

6... A tender friendship took a slight detour ~

7... I’m shook like a jack hammer on concrete ~

8... A violent rush, pin pulled from the grenade

9... A babe’s arrival, a soft world of blue ~

10... As autumn dawns and chrysanthemums bloom

11... Your purpose in my life has been fulfilled

12... The gentle storm moves with intense thunder ~

13... It’s coming back, this yanking in my chest

14... Your house of cards came tumbling at your feet ~

15... A kiss with fireworks is fable-staged ~

16... My friend spins words like a child spins a top ~

17... By holding your tongue, you condone abuse ~

18... She’s my defender, first to tell you off ~

19... Decades of care performed without remark ~

20... The target of your insults is off course ~

21... Often I smile when underneath I scream ~

22... We’ve got you by the tail, you lion wretch

23... She knows which side her buttered bread’s procured~

24... A tangled heap of vines yearn to be free ~

25... In the end some will rally for your name

26... You fill the air with Putrid Undertones

27... Your pockets lined with dusty mourning ash

28... Only true kindred spirits understand

29... The arrows flung my way cause me to scoff

30... Your true colors are quickly shining through

31... She’s not a pigeon housed in a cramped coop ~

32... Behind closed doors lurks secrets unrevealed ~

33... Her dignity spread all over the rug

34... You banished me from your once friendly house

35... Get off my stoop! You screamed red-faced and wild

36... Collateral damage left in your wake ~

37... I didn’t know what hit me, left me stunned

38... Without my pen, I doubt that I could breathe

39... Today I met a new friend from the grave

40... Like crazed hyenas circling tasty prey

41... The Earl of Chesterfield and you are matched

42... His second wife compares not to the first

43... You eagerly fleece babes of their due lot

44... The wringing of your hands is heard by God

45... A vile extortionist without remorse

46... I must say in my own estimation

47... A lonely traveler upon this globe

48... Since Karma never loses an address

49... You failed to cut off her stored oxygen

50... The calendar grows short as daylight thins

51... Blinded by greed, your conscience forms a stone

52... Your sinister behavior caused my grief ~

53... A spiky-haired black widow creeps on by

54... I’ve never been called a fair-weather friend

55... Fail, my lost relatives are full of bunk!

56... Your final wishes have been overlooked

57... The sorrow fades like a midsummer tan

58... Judged undeserved, you’re not worth a whole loaf

59... I saw you slowly going off the rails

60... I know that sonnets should be filled with love

61... I come alive on misty, foggy days

62... You’ve got some gall calling your kin rude names

63... Victoria - victorious - your name

64... When you are short of breath and slight of smiles

65... You’re quite diminutive in many ways:

66... Your burning missiles cannot penetrate

67... I use my pen to manage pent up grief

68... Your case was soon relinquished, gossip quelled

69... My depth of care proved not to be my friend

70... We put our confidence in gravity

71... I love Jane Austen when I’m feeling light

72... Upstanding citizen what a fat joke

73... It’s been said that a dog’s a man’s best friend

74... Loving attention, he’d jump on your lap

75... A close friend and I share the love of tea

76... The gold dust gypsy turned to silver dust

77... He couldn’t stand that your star outshined his

78... In circles dancing with your tambourine

79... With paper lanterns her bedroom is filled

80... When they first fell in love they didn’t know

81... A royal family’s nothing but a brand

82... I’m done with hefty burdens and with grief

83... I won’t address each stupid dog that barks

84...