aut telos
by
Lida E. Quillen

.

teleologia conceived Her
and so, She lives.

...ageless and yet,
not deathless.
...seeking answers
to Her existence.

Fearing for life
and Her creations.

...real or imagined foes,
She forever combats,
...shaping Her environs
with bloody swathes.

Fulfilling Her destiny
even as She seeks.

Prayer to the Muse
by
L. E. Quillen

.

I most humbly
beseech you

Let me write
what I am
inspired to write

Give me the strength
to continue in the
face of rejection

Please aid me in my
writing time to
ignore all concerns
other than my writing

Open the inner doors
let the words flow
I beseech thee, O Muse!

Seal off the outer doors
Leave me be
Let me write

Sacrifice to the Muse
by
L. E. Quillen

.

I will do whatever
it takes
to enlist Your aid.

O Muse, should I offer
incense, or my blood
or both?

I scream, I cry, I rage.
I cut out a piece of myself
and impale it on paper.

I dive, I swoop, I soar
the words come.

The words... are not
... there. I crash.

O Muse, why is writing
so damned painful?

Or, on the best of days
merely excruciatingly
difficult?

I work, I strive, I die
a little each day.

Space. I need space.
Inner space as well
as outer space
in which to write.

O Muse, aid me in
my endeavors.

I offer up as sacrifice
my pain, my confusion,
sublimation of my lusts
and needs.

O Muse, let your radiance
fall on me.
Enlighten me.

Am I destined to be a poet,
a philosopher,
or a writer?

I will do whatever
it takes
to enlist Your aid.