Mike Mercer asked Cynthia Sharp:

How many story lines does it in order to make a poem come to life?:}

Cynthia Sharp What a great question! Sometimes simple is elegant, but I think that using two or three sets of words in your diction really brings a poem to life. For a short poem, I might just use two sets of words, like "spirituality" and "nature". In a longer poem, like "You Were There," I combine "nature," "love" and music vocabulary to really give the reader the feelings associated with each of those sets of words. We can also play with verb tense to create juxtaposition (opposites) that make the emotion of the poem stronger.

You Were There

You were there
in lavender sunset swirls
of paint on canvas,
through the grassy terrain
to Sechelt beach,
in the cadence of royal blue shells
the waves washed to shore,
the gentleness you are
finding its way to me,
like the wind breathing cypress
through the grace of long easy days.

You were there
in the tempo of waiting,
the lonely pages
of chapters in time
when I poured
my longing into work,
loving through brokenness.

You were there
in the allegro
of road trips through life,
the toddlers and labradors and sunflowers
I nurtured as my own
and in the crescendo of mountain trails
leading to Eagle Bluffs.

You are there
out my bedroom window,
as planes disappear into stars
and the moon fills each night
to watch over and guide and protect
this exquisite gift of existence.

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