Published Poetry
Marie Brack
At the 2017 Royal Palm Literary Award Banquet, author Marie Brack won First Place for her published poem, A Meno-Pause for Reflection. Each year at the RPLA Banquet, authors experience the joy of earning accolades for all the hard work that is often done in the privacy of the home with little to no recognition. We’re showcasing the best of the best with our First Place winners spotlight. Not only does RPLA recognize extraordinary talent, but we’re giving readers an opportunity to sample excerpts from the winning stories. Marie enjoys creating short fiction. Although Ms. Brack lives primarily in cyberspace, she also has a physical home in Florida. She is a member of two writers groups.
Marie has agreed to share her complete poem here:
A Meno-Pause for Reflection
Over forty and forty over,
The years and pounds creep up.
In youth, what was accomplishment,
Didn’t seem to make a dent.
The world that once we would repair
Is still no farther from despair.
Burn, Baby, Burn!
Rebuilt
We Shall Overcome
Undone
Hell, no, we didn’t go-
So?
Busy, busy,
What did we gain?
Around the block and back again.
In a tizzy
No pain no gain
Around the block and back again.
Families fractured
Career? Laid off!
Financial freedom
Too far off.
Make a difference?
The knowing scoff.
JFK, RFK
Lennon, Marx [1]
Joplin, Hendrix
Left their marks?
Our kids don’t hold them
in their hearts.
Willie Loman, he’s our guy,
You failed, Willie, give up and die!
Arthur, King of Camelot
No longer seems to be so hot
just one survivor left to tell
that once there was a Camelot.
[1] John, Groucho
An interview with Marie:
Q: Where do you get your story ideas?
A: They just pop up in my mind.
Q: Anything in particular about your award-winning RPLA entry that you’d like to share?
A: It was an accident. I was sending in entries in the mystery and nonfiction categories and looked around for another thing to enter. I did have this poem, so I sent it as an afterthought.
Q. Who do you credit for inspiring your writing?
A: My mother was a writer. I started writing when my nest was empty and I needed something to do.
Q. What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
A: You have to write, and you also have to read. Best of both worlds, read books about how to write.
Contact Marie at http://www.amazon.com/author/mariebrack
