More Stories! - The Poetry of Frank Beresheim

The Art of Listening

We may have
spoken many times,
but I may not have heard you.
Possibly I wasn’t ready
to hear what you were saying
or I heard you
but couldn’t really hear you speak.
It is almost like
I was at one end of a tunnel
and you at another
and the air between us
was an obscured haze.
All at once, it seemed, the density
has lifted and I thought
I heard you say.......

published in YOUnMEnHP 9 11 00

All I Ever Really Needed

For Andy j
All I ever really needed,
was within me.
I was always looking
outside for acceptance.
When I got it,
it really didn’t mean
that much to me,
because I never felt worthy.
I always believed,
someone was obligated
to give me praise,
Because I wasn’t good enough
And they took pity on me.
Still I insisted on seeking acceptance,
from the world outside,
hoping this time
I would really be accepted.
This was my insanity,
my driving force,
my way of life.
Then I found the secret,
it was within me.
I learned first to like me,
It was hard
To see the face
in the mirror;
"Looking good kid ! ".
Today I have learned
to love myself,
for me,
the good guy,
With all my merits and faults,
because it’s just me.
There is no one like me,
I am very special to me,
unique in every way,
and that acceptance is all
that matters to me.

published in YOUnMEnHP 8 28 00

Metamorphic

(dedicated to Foster Parsons)

My disease is an illness

that shackles my mind

with psychological handcuffs.

It drives me weary

from the destruction

that plagues my soul.

I never even knew

how sick I really was,

and would've been

disgusted at the sight of me.

I was raw evil,

like a hurricane inflicting pain
to all those who crossed my path.

I was physically afflicted with an allergy

to more of what ever I liked,

booze, drugs...

My only emotions were

guilt, shame, anger

fear and resentments.

My spirit was lacking

the wisdom to know the difference.

My disease took me places

I never wanted to be in,

spiraling downward to my bottom.

All doors were closed,

either I got sober,

or I went behind the wall,

wet brained, burnt to the flight deck.

The hand of the Twelve Steps

reached for me, showing me love

when I couldn't face the face in the mirror.

I learned it was one day at a time,

and how to live life on life's term.

Today I have been freed

of those manacles that bound me.
Today I have a life,

a new found peace.

"The Promises"

I heard came true,

life is beautiful.

published in YOUnMEnHP 10 27 01

Reggie

Reggie played guitar
strung up just left like Jimi.
He played like a jackhammer,
ripping through asphalt and concrete,
or smooth sailing
like a mountain stream.
His riffs were
wild and spacey like VOODOO,
or tight, Black tie formal.
He played the blues
like Chicago after dark,
and rocked
like Time Square at Midnight.
Somewhere he got
captured by colors,
and the fire in his veins
burned his brain
with madcap laughs.
His warped and tortured spirit
walks in the land of OZ,
while his body
remains in the funny papers.

Published in Breathe Magazine Spring 03

Broken Toys

For anonymous

When you are finished with me,
just throw me down.
Go grab another toy,
another plaything to abuse.
Don’t think I have feelings,
because I exist onl
for your amusement.
Do all kinds of
sadistic things to me,
twist my head off,
pull my limbs off,
rip out my hair.
Leave me out
in the rain,
and let me
burn in the sun.
Dress me up
for a tea party
with your friends
and tell me how to act,
like a puppet on a string.
Go grab another toy,
another plaything to abuse.

Brothers in Arms

For Danny M.

I used to like walking in the woods.
I used to feel so at peace, one with nature.
A new neighbor moved in across the street,
that is when I started seeing dead deer,
and hearing the wolves howl during the day.
I would find deer mauled, always missing one leg, and felt very unsettled by it.
It brought back evil memories of death during the war.
One guy in my platoon reacted to the horrors he heard
by chopping off a prisoners arm for every aversion discovered.
One of the prisoners vowed never ending revenge.
My son came home for dinner, and said the new neighbor is missing an arm.

Dancing in Pajamas

Dancing in Pajamas
With the lights down low
the music of the radio
plays the songs we all know
sharing our secrets
letting love flow
dancing in pajamas
Dancing in Pajamas
With the one you love
the magic of the evening
and your eyes all aglow
sharing our dreams
letting love flow
Dancing in Pajamas
Only two can Tango
only two can Cha cha cha
only two can do a Two step
or the foxtrot
but only you can go
Dancing in Pajamas
Dancing in Pajamas
with a sheet and pillow
dancing in the evening
til the morning is aglow
Dancing in Pajamas
Dancing in Pajamas Dancing in Pajamas

This was published and I can't remember where.

I always loved that song

When you played
your song on my piano
the music was so sweet,
so soft, and sensuous.
Your song is
delicate like
the petals of a rose,
and sings
the sound of love.
Every beat of my heart
is in tune with yours,
dancing in our own rhythm.
Your song
was a hit before
we were born,
it was my favorite long
before you wrote it
the melody lingers on,
as your song continues
with us in pure harmony.

Imperfection

Looking at wrongs,
and promises broken,
it is easy to see pain.
There are no mistakes,
only lessons to be learned.
Tolerance teaches Life’s affirmation.
Wisdom is facing fears
through brave awareness.
Acceptance is giving one self
with merits and faults
to grace the world
with the presence
of understanding
imperfection.

Love is
Love is merciful and compassionate.
Love is not brash, brazen, forceful or fruitless.
Love does not command its own passage
yet allows for its progression.
Love is not heartless,
and holds no memory
of when it has been marred.
Love does not bask in the questionable,
yet elates in the joy of truth.
Love has no expectations,
and does not seek destiny in fulfilment.
Serendipity precedes love, as providence is lost.
For love is letting go without attachments.
Love is color blind, and knows no gender or age.
Love knows only love.
It is simplistic, yet eloquent,
and luminous in its brilliance.
Love is the answer we all seek.
Love nurtures completely.
It is the hunger deep within our souls,
at the core of being.
Love is the key to eternity,
the essential essence of life,
for without it we cannot survive.
Love is spiritual, blessing our unity.
All of these wonders describe love but
none can describe the beauty of love
I see in your eyes.

I wrote this and many have compared it to this bible passage, but I don't see it.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Cor. 13:4-8a).

Meant to be

Sometimes people
come into your life
and you know
it was meant to be.
There is a moment
when time stands still,
and everything freezes.
For me it was when
we first shared eye contact
a memory that remains
to take my breath away.
My heart slid like a landslide
because I fell so deep into you
My world will never be the same,
Sometimes things are meant to be.

Nothing changes if nothing changes

I've got a pocketful of miracles,
and I got a ray of hope,
and I got these dreams that won't stop,
I'm gonna move me to the top.
All I need is a prayer
and the Lord to help me there.
Nothing changes if nothing changes!
You've got to start somewhere
Nothing changes if nothing changes!
You only have one life to live,
make it while you can.
I've got a world of desire
and I've got iron steel will
I got an open mind,
And I'm willing to make the changes
to get me there
Nothing changes if nothing changes!
You only have one life to live,
make it while you can.
Nothing changes
until we do,
Make the change

The Waitress and the Dishwasher

Remember when we both
Worked at the "Greasy Spoon"?
You waited on tables,
I was the dishwasher,
We would stay late to close shop each night
Then,
On Saturday nights
When everyone had gone,
We would have our own private party.
We turned the lights down low
And danced to Sam Cooke,
Crooning on the radio.
I had dishpan hands, sore from the hard days' chores
But my heart still wanted to dance
Captivated by your elegance
Such graceful movements
As
Hand in hand
We would slow dance
Around the tables,
Amid the darkness of the night,
I think it was on those Saturday nights
I fell
In love with you
And as I think back now
Many years on
I hear the song
And I close my eyes
it brings me back
I can still see your radiant smile
Your hand in mine
Forever

Lies, Lies and Damn Lies!

I'll just have a few,

down at the watering hole.

I promise

I won't get drunk,

fall down, throw up

pass out, blackout

and shame you

beyond embarrassment.

I won't have to bear

the face of guilt, and pain,

because I can handle it.

I know I won't be saying,

"I can have just one more",

because I have it under control.

I'm not an alcoholic,

a drunk, lush, rummy or wino.

I can't be a drunk because

Only bums are drunks,

and people who

drink before noon are alkies.

I'm not a drunk because

I only drink on the weekends,

I only drink beer, and I still have a job.

I'm not a drunk because

You cannot tell when I'm drunk,

I never lose friends,

and I still have a family.

I'm not a drunk and I believe it!

published in YOUnMEnHP 2 24 01

Born in New York City in 1959, Frank Beresheim moved to the Catskill Mountains as a child, but returned to Queens at age 16, where he began writing poetry and playing music. Married in 1988, Frank returned to the Catskills and never looked back. He lives with his wife and two teenaged sons in the friendly community of Saugerties.