Another Suitcase

Theme for October 2009: Another Suitcase

Please vote for your favourite poem.
Email amanda@writerswrite.co.za with your winning poet’s name in the subject line.

Another Suitcase by Desireé Gounden

Another suitcase…yet again! awaits
I’m really excited mum
But when will this abate?
This constant migration seems to be my fate!

Don’t fret my dear
I smile…wishing to allay her fear
This is not your destiny
But a significant element of your life’s journey.

This move of nine
Exceeds your age by two
At such a tender age, You
Have adopted an adaptability to change

An attribute which will hold you in good stead
As you will find in your life ahead.

It’s only another suitcase
Consider it packed
With yet another splendid adventure!
There is no danger
For I
Am always with you
Now and forever.

The itinerant life by Barbara Peacock

It used to be fun,
Exciting, colourful, attractive;
Thrilling even.
But that was before.
Now it’s work,
Drudgery, enervating, depressing;
Wasted effort.
This is after.

It was different places,
Time to explore, people to meet.
Before.
Now it’s too quick to see anything,
To learn, to dream, to see.
After.

I want to be with you.
Only you.
I want to put down roots,
Someplace that’s ours.
I want constancy;
Friends, places, smells, weather.

I want to never see another suitcase.
I want to be with you.

The choice is simple.
Not painless, but clear.
Another suitcase to pack,
My home is where you are.

Another Suitcase by Peter Cronshaw 

Another suitcase - on an airline carousel;
If air-miles were words, what tales I could tell
Of trips to weird and far destinations;
Of frantic and romantic exotic locations,
Through rain, heat and propwashing dust,
And rough bag handlers. Thank God I’m robust !
I’ve flown New York to Singapore,
Acapulco to Bangalore,
Been t***ed about on ferry boats,
Even met some mountain goats,
Dumped in dark places, in the company of mice,
Or stuck on a runway, fighting off ice.
Sometimes with companions, too often alone,
Hemmed in by strangers, no space of my own.
On two occasions I’ve been lost,
In tropic heat and permafrost,
Waiting for hours, forlorn and pathetic,
Feeling the pain of a leaking cosmetic.
I’ve carried silk shirts and Jimmy Choo’s,
Souvenirs and smuggled booze.
I’ve followed family and fashion,
Witnessed business and passion,
Been stared at by Customs boys,
While concealing adult toys.
Usually with him, but sometimes with her,
My traveling days are a bit of a blur,
I’ve been a friend of humanity,
Helping dreams become reality,
But when the conveyor moves, at the ring of a bell,
I’m just another suitcase on an airline carousel

ANOTHER SUITCASE by Bernadette Ann Alexander

As she hadn’t seen me for many years
I’d been gathering dust
But today, fighting back the tears,
With an unceremonious thrust,
She hauled me from the shed
rushed up the stairs and flung me on the bed.

Tears streaming down her face
She beat, shook, and wiped me down
As if she was in a marathon race
Books, old love letters, a Beauty queen crown
She filled me to capacity,
Why was she doing this to me?

She opened a suitcase lying on the floor
And added an item not meant for me
Before she headed for the door
She looked around once more to see
That all was as it should be before she left for good
She was taking flight
And dragged both me and the other suitcase into the night. 

Another Suitcase by By Lesley Donnelly

I landed on the conveyor belt with an unsympathetic thud
My dreams of superiority nipped neatly in the bud!
My luxurious leather exterior was prodded hard and poked,
My lovely leather strap man handled and it then broke.
My first overseas trip – what a traumatic event
I had so looked forward to where I was being sent!
Ouch! What is this a sharp thing an object in my latch?
Stop it please! – Oh help! They are forcing open my catch
Uncaring rough hands now rummaging through my stuff
If my owner sees you now she’ll say “enough’s enough”
A shove and push and everything’s t***ed right back inside
A sharp snap of my locks – Oh I wish I could run and hide!
I’ll arrive at my destination half open and half shut
Only to be sniffed over with a guy and his furry mutt.
Ouch! On the conveyor belt again with unruly push and shove,
At the airport you certainly aren’t treated with any love.
On to a trolley then shoved in right under the plane,
Oh dear, my leather exterior will never be the same!
My mistress will be angry they’ve stolen of her things,
She really should have wrapped me in some of that plastic cling
Frightened and pathetic and feeling rather small……
But what will they care, I’m just suitcase after all!

Another suitcase by Matshidiso Mmotlana

Confusion in my emotion with every evolution
There I find myself going back again
This heart speaks the language of fools
And this mind speaks the language of the wise
But with every evolution the mind decides
While with every evolution the heart weakens

Just the touch of his hand makes the heart jumps with joy
With the same touch the mind runs wild like wildfire after volcanic eruption
As the forces of the winds change directions in me
I find myself swimming in the whirlpool of shame, fear, weakness, passion and hope
With every evolution, every confusion, every fusion I find myself with a suitcase
I go back, I go forward, I stand and I pack

I pack and I unpack, I find myself with a suitcase
Another suitcase 

Another suitcase by Natasha Williams

Life is a journey, or so they say
I’ll just gather my luggage and be on my way
The contents thereof cannot be seen
These suitcases describe my very being

The pink one here is filled with childhood memories
Of chasing butterflies and climbing oak trees
Along with the joy and innocent laughter
Comes the anguished pain from losing my father

In the red bag over there, you will find my teenage years
Confusion, rebellion and heart wrenching tears
I thought the world would be a better place
If I were not here to occupy this worthless space

As time passed by, I was pleasantly surprised
By the promise of new memories that soon would arise
The green case contains maturity; the hope of things to come
My first kiss, first love, my beautiful firstborn son

My favourite is this antique wooden chest
It holds wonderful treasures, those I cherish best
With my children’s names carved on its exterior
Inside, Mom’s wise words about discipline and good behaviour

The time has come for me to depart
On a brand new journey I now must embark
No thank you, I need no assistance
All this luggage is part of my existence

The road ahead is an assortment of mysteries
Excitement consumes me until its discovery
I must not linger as the unknown unfolds
Life brings more moments, another suitcase to hold

The Marvel Merchant by Shirley Fodor

Another Suitcase by Alice Beckett

I have had more than my fair share today
Why in heavens name could they not have found another way?
There I was sitting in the front
Unfortunately I just had to bear this stunt

First there was a bucket and two big bottles of oil
Then came four black plastic bags
A stack of blankets, two suitcases with wheels
And lo and behold another suitcase, I almost keeled!

It was the front seat behind the taxi driver
And all because we only have to pay a fiver
If I had my way I would have ticked off the driver

I tried not to scowl because the perpetrator was elderly and apologetic
The drive was hot and bumpy, the bags stacked against my leg, static
In conversation with the driver I heard they were going to Zimbabwe
Oh, I thought, at least I’m not going anywhere!

So when we get to the bus station
The other passengers rush out - there’s just no consideration
I’m squashed behind this stack but still feel the need to help
And I don’t mind so much when I see the smiles of appreciation

Another Suitcase by Ayanda Kheswa

As she folded and packed each piece of clothing,
Each piece reminding her of a time and place,
Another love affair over and done,
Another piece of her heart gone,
Leaving behind malicious bruises of regret.

She exhales as she continues folding and packing,
Restraining her tears – she imagines her stronger self,
Suddenly the thought is interrupted by a memory of a time,
When love was present, a future was anticipated and plans were made,
Paralysing self doubt whispers, “shouldn’t I maybe leave tomorrow?”

She remembers the time when he degraded and humiliated her;
Spoke to her as if she were an idiot or a nuisance that deserved no respect;
When he ignored her and left her starved for his affection;
When he expressed his dissatisfaction and her inadequacy in their relationship;
When her dreams were belittled and seen as scattered not worthy of his support;
Day after day – flaw after flaw – criticism after criticism – that’s all she got!

She zips up her suitcase, picks it up – she sighs – it is so heavy?
Her body was weak, her heart resilient and her strength of spirit shielding her,
She pulls another suitcase and packs both of them in the boot of the taxi,
She had insured that her existence in that house was erased,
She had made the decision to leave – she hated this part.

First thing she longed for was a cup of tea,
To toast to an adventure ahead – after all she was a beautiful and intelligent woman,
This was the end of the trampling on her self worth,
The beginning of a lesson learned,
No more emotional and mental control by money,
From a series of love affairs – numerous packed suitcases,
All she needed was an ear – she too had a story to tell . . . 

Another Suitcase by Mandy Schwark

Another time,
Another leap
Another night of losing sleep
Another sign,
Another dream
Still nothing is quite as it seems
I fall inside
My own desire
Raging winds and rampant fire,
Another tear,
Another name
Another man who was the same.
In my mind I fear the night,
The voices tell me it’s alright
But nothing changes, it remains
The tortured beast in rusted chains.
He left the door unlocked this time
A chance for two fates to entwine,
I struggled, but I knew he’d win
The beast eventually got in.
In darkness cold, a rotting stench,
A suitcase hidden beneath a bench
Tape ran red, interests ran dry,
Another one was left to die.
I was a victim of the knife
God knows in this town they run rife,
Today, in the exact same place,
They found another ‘lost’ suitcase,
This time, for the world to see,
Inside the suitcase.... was me. 

Another Suitcase by: Shelley Bragg

Slowly the tears fight to get through,
The lip quivers
The cheeks redden
“I won’t, I won’t cry in front of you.”

Tightly, I feel his hand against mine,
Our fingers tangled
My heart pounding
“We’re saying goodbye, yet another time.”

Hurriedly I’d packed, late last night
The mind racing
He was sleeping
“Why does my leaving never feel right?”

Gently, he takes me into his embrace
Our lips touching
My heart sensing
“For him, I’ll never get to pack another suitcase.” 

Going on Holiday by Kevin Lee

“Don’t forget” said my Lady
“You lucky old fellow!
To fill up this suitcase,
For the seaside; tomorrow!”

A simple man, either loved or hated
I think of myself as,
Well….
Uncomplicated.

Don’t like competition – here’s a current example
Of a new dude in town
Who happens to trespass…
On MY piece of ground.

He looks up my clients, he shows no respect.
...have to stop that kind of thing happening.
So I send him an invite to my house that night
“Share a drink, a chat, understanding?”

But alas he’s the one who spoils the moment
He asks “To retire, are you ready?”
ME?! Step down after all of these years?
“Somebody please hold me steady!”

He’s eating an oyster, his head slowed by wine
When I give him a smack with my axe
When the arrogant upstart’s in multiple pieces
I feel myself start to relax

Then I gather the bits, put them into the case
That my Lady left out for the holiday
And I drive out of town where I bury the dude
Deep, where he’ll have less to say.

Yes he’s gone and my town is my turf again
Life returns to its leisurely pace
In the meantime I have to go down to the store..
Damn – for another suitcase!

Another Suitcase by Jeanette Mackenzie

My mind is like a luggage hall
To sort, to move, to clear
Suitcases that are packed and stacked
With thoughts, with joy, with fear

And as I make some progress
Another suitcase stands in line
To open up and to explore
The feelings that are mine

Some are like a jumbled mess
While others, orderly
I wish that some would disappear
And clear some space for me

There are childhood recollections
Which all take some sorting through
Then family and teenage stuff
Fill up another few

Sometimes I line them neatly
Other times the chaos reigns
It all depends on how I feel
To connect my heart and brain

Some are really heavy
Still I drag from day to day
Those that need disposing of
And that would clear the way…..

For yet another suitcase
That will need my exploration
Filled with treasures I can call my own
And give hope and inspiration 

ANOTHER SUITCASE By Penny J. Starbuck

We saw you creep away by moonlight - Toby, your victim and I
We knew that the dawn would soon light the morn of a radiant autumn sky
You did not know yourself observed, and thought your Beau was dead
But I found him by stealth and I nursed him to health
And I stitched up the gash in his head
Then he told of the gold that you’d stolen and sold –
I thought of our love and my blood ran cold
And oh how I cried as it sputtered and died
I knew that you’d used me and how much you’d lied-
But Toby our dog has a wondrous nose
And we searched many days as the forest froze
‘Til we found the ground where the money was bound
In a case – and we took it out
We replaced the case in your hiding place
In the crunching snow where the cold winds blow
And when there’s a thaw and the cold is no more
You’ll return to pick up your due
Then you’ll find you a treat – it’s all counterfeit
And I’m not here waiting for you
The forlorn rebound of a train’s lone sound
As it clicks and it clacks down the railroad tracks
Drifts to me in the still predawn
Where the night fades away and a new day’s born
It says to me ‘you are free – you are free
Clickety-clack – he cannot come back
Clickety-clack you are free of the rack’ -
And we three vanished without a trace
With the money we took in another suitcase

Another Suitcase by Mark

It mocks me from the front door,
Telling me of its plan to go where others have gone before.
The same space that he came to fill,
He now leaves emptied, alone.

I cannot move from the window,
I’m held captive by scene played out outside the window.
Strangers moving pieces of our life,
Deciding what should stay, what should go.

He leaves but the feint traces of him remain.
His smell lingers in the house, the bed, on my skin.
His face loving and leaving are etched in the folds of my memory.
Water cannot wash him away.

I touch myself in the places he has been.
I cannot fill them with my clumsy hands, the space he’s left is to wide.
I feel myself slip away, I feel it leave,
The heart that’s of no use to me now,
It drenched and wrung dry.

My pieces ache, the house seems to quake.
Every fibre seems to unravel as the thoughts begin too touch their shoulders to the door.

He has gone away
He has gone away,
He has gone away.

Another by Karen Cutts

My truest love, my darling
Reason for being, reason for being here
I see you after all these long years
Revealed to me in that bright countenance
Your little smile, bright torch in the dark
Your honeyed glossy brown eyes
Gently warm me through with awe
No need for another suitcase my soul
You have traveled too far already
No need to search the universe
For love, for here I am, love
All those years of longing
All those years of waiting for you
All the time thinking I searched in vain
And yet, when half life had failed
You stand before me, a man
And not just a man, mine unabridged
Put down the suitcase and rest
You are found, you are where you should be
No need for another suitcase
Come rest at peace with me.

Another suitcase by Carolyn Cordon

Packed full of grief and loss
it carries my burnt hopes
and raped dreams.
I wish I could throw it away
but it travels back to me
everytime you return with it
and I let you in, yet again.

I should change the locks,
leave town, or finally act
on the one dream that keeps
me going. The lovely nightmare
where you knock me over and
I stand up, pointing accusations
at you and I shoot you dead. 

Another Suitcase by Laetitia Botha

Unpack
Another suitcase

Unclick the clips
when the dew shows
on the face of the morning glory.
Present to the day the jewels of the night,
and dress me in tearful stones of my fearful flight.

Run
from ancient fears of who-I-am, and who-I-cannot-be.

When the dawn breaks, now
unclick the clips
of the case of me.
A torn and haggard leather case;
metal against skin -
and fear of breaking the mould
that shares the shell of who-I-am.

There, in splendour, ingloriously, exposed
are clothes, jewels, and
things – that have all been mustered to celebrate who:
Who-I-was, and who-I-cannot be.

Click the clips
when the dry night falls
on the stoep with vine and another bottle of Merlot,
and close the case of who-I-am, and who-I-cannot be.

Escape artist, of who-I-am,
And who-I-cannot be.

I am merely their stylist.

Another Suitcase by Kella Kills

This yo-yo diet of love and hate
has slipped into a dangerous weight,
the lies you purged - weighed down on me
split my tongue with misery

i tried to hold the air so still
so the tension u leave - wont dare to build
you told me ’’everything will be Ok’’
’’we’re not the only ones that need to be saved’’

i found myself relying on on every breathe - every sigh
i told myself ’’Just hang on - don’t cry’’
you took me in with your words of love
you spat me out - as if i would never be enough

i watched myself let go of your hand
i gave you up - like a sacrificed lamb
i told you ’’maybe in the future - someday’’
i threw your suitcase and said ’’Go on - you cant stay’’

Another suitcase by Petra Oelofse

Where is it?
Here come the skis again
The cardboard box
The tired gym bag
Where is it?
Trollies full turn away
Empty places
Double locked faces
Where is it?
Not now
Not this
The next time round …
Where is it?
Another suitcase…
Another suitcase!
Her blood sings
Grab the strap
Swing it down
Twenty k’s of Afghanistan’s best
His voice weighs more
A heavy death
“Excuse me miss”
So innocent
Another suitcase
Just another suitcase

To Pack for Hospital by Sarah Sassoon

Pink or blue?
Dunno
3 yellow baby grows
3 protein bars - mocha
Diet Coke
Make up bag
Brush
Camera
Locitanne Honey body wash/cream
Contacts
Cellphone
Sanitary pads (heaven knows what for)
Nail file
Ugg boots
Jeans (can’t wait to fit back in)
Tops
Pj’s
What else...oh yes
2 bottles
Dummies - sterilised
Reciever blanket x 2
Formula
Ok all done
All ready
Let’s go

Another Suitcase by L Rogle

Another suitcase another trip is mapped
Endless round, brilliant ideas unpacked
Come rain or shine, good times or bad
Another road, another town, another bag.

Another suitcase packed in blurred repetition
Become so skilful can be done in any condition
Drunk or sober, high or flying or even sleeping
Am I dreaming or is that a phone beeping?

Another suitcase unpacked at new destination
A job on the run a dumb idea in any situation
The highs and the lows may suit a junkie
All I want is a faithful flunky

Another suitcase to pack the next trip to plan
A hotel room to book with TV and a fan
Agendas to plan for boring meetings
Where memory fails in hasty greetings

Another suitcase, another place, another plane
Will I ever my sanity regain?
A sure cure for living on the edge I think
Is a wedge from stress with another drink

Another Suitcase by Haley Moore

Another suitcase for the unpacking.
Unloading, unraveling.
More baggage for disposal
For washing and re-packing.

Suitcases worn out and stained -
Hidden and cramped.
Ignored and forgotten.
Tightly packed, and restrained.

Labouring over their surplus
Each article,
One by one.
Determining then, it’s purpose.

Declutter and empty all stored there
Brush off dust.
Clear off rust.
Years of packing - to be fair.

Emptying suitcases one at a time
Absorb, re-sort, dispose of
Issues of old.
Leaving suitcases- behind.

ANOTHER SUITCASE by Celeste Mulholland

Yet another brown suitcase arrived today
Where they’re coming from I am not sure
It’s the third one this week, and I wonder
again, won’t there or will there be more?

You see, I took a vacation from Life, and where I went
or whatever I did, I packed away stuff; it was easier then
to pretend, pass over, play bluff. But expedience is never
an answer I know, now and more clearly than when

I hid it, ignored it, just let it be don’t you know,
Sort of thought I’d keep it out of my say
and not face who I was or have turned out to be
But you know how Life gets its own way.

Now we both must agree, just how truth and experience
Can oft times strange bedfellows be
For all that we did and how we remember things
Past years, passed months, can be key

to facing Acceptance. Realization. Time served.
But who’s to know, when all’s said and done
that actions do speak louder than words?
Could it be me? Is it now? Am I the one?

Do I still have the means to open these carry alls?
Is there something in them now that I need?
Or does a chance to renew, go again, try some more
Set me straight with advice I will heed?

Another suitcase came today.
Ah; a smart one, and in the pink.
These bags are now welcome! I‘ve found some keys!
See, I’ve come home to me; I think!

Another Suticase by Mark A Whelan

What is the cause for this delay
This bottleneck
Someone tell me
Another suitcase sir what do you mean
another suitcase sir

It has gone missing another suitcase
We try to find it for the woman who
Lose it sir it was

Not lost it is happening more and
More all of the time these suitcases bags
Being stolen stolen

I tell you so you say another suitcase
Has is stolen we
Must find it i am

So tired of hearing it the news that
Starts everyday another suitcase missing
Is stolen we must

Find it contraband is my
Favourite word missing our random
Searches of luggage and goods bags of

Value we find some things are illicit
Illegal we laughingly confiscate cigarettes and
Mags

Now no more it is always the same
Another suitcase is missing

ANOTHER SUITCASE by Hannah Lurie

She sighed and unpacked
yet another suitcase
There were dresses
and shoes and handbags
and stockings -
and each garment
more boring than
the one before
The gloved hands
would be waved
at the crowds
with the head inclined
to her subjects
She wondered
what her daughter-in-law
thought of her
She knew what the previous
one thought, poor creature
Two young women
burst into the room
with hatboxes
They took the hats out
and perched them
on their heads
screaming with laughter
and twirled around
waving their hands
at the invisible crowds
“Off with our heads!”
one shrieked.

ANOTHER SUITCASE by Sandra Williams

ANOTHER SUITCASE OF INFINITE WISDOM by Heidi Nelson

The infinite wisdom of time passed by,
Our learning curve,
Our mentor,
Our salvation,
Our brain the suitcase of our lives,
The knowledge of past lessons learnt,
Compartmentalized,
Emotions passed by,
Trials & tribulations,
Wins & losses the end result,
Drugs of willingness leaving us numb,
Numb to the loss & contentment we felt,
A grip of life’s embrace,
The loss of lives,
The losing battle of wisdom gained,
Never to be taught again!!

ANOTHER SUITCASE by Helen Arnett

Not another suitcase Mom!
Mother dear, that’s four!
The guest room isn’t big enough
You won’t get out the door.

You said you had a row with Dad
And nasty things were said.
You threw off all the bedclothes
And jumped up out of bed!

Well now you’ve come to stay with us
There’s dinner to be made
And check the children’s homework too
And get the table laid.

There won’t be time for golf or bowls
Or lazing in the sun
As after sports and dancing class
There’s shopping to be done.

Dad phoned to say he’s missing you
And won’t you come back home,
He tried to get the laundry done
But there was too much foam!

Now Mother dear don’t shed a tear
For what will be will be,
You say you need to sort him out
On that we do agree.

Here’s another suitcase Mom
To stow into your car,
Love to Dad, and travel safe,
The journey home’s not far.

Another suitcase by Marolize Kinnear

As I am sitting here filling my eyes with tears
Trying so hard to pack my suitcase without falling down to the ground
Why did you do this to me?
All our laughter and happiness I have to put aside so my tears can pass by

So I pack another suitcase this time the final suitcase
As I close it I know I am like a book
Read by hundreds, torn by thousands
Judged by my cover by millions
As I close this chapter in my life with a clip
I know it’s over
As I put my brown suitcase next to my worn shoes
I know it’s over
As I look around for the final time
I know it’s over
I take my suitcase under my arms
Walk slowly up to the door as you slam the door in my face
I am like a suitcase you can open me and close me
One day I will brake and won’t open or close anymore
You will be the one suffering then, to carry everything in your two hands
No longer will I full my suitcase with all your problems and no longer will it rest on my heart.

Solid as a leather glove another suitcase by Dee Andrew

You hold my lives with fingers that know me completely
Under my winter jerseys you lie low and cold.
Snap goes the summer locks, as your creaky lid
Swollen with words, pours across the years.

Schoolboy love letters on blue lined paper
Dead letters telling me to quit,
Talkative letters of long ago friends.
Who has time to read them again?

I reach in and throw any handfuls away,
They fluttter slowly to my sides
Smelling of lavender and ash.

Coal black paper in an elasticated side is scrunched up sin.
The billious bottom holds the secret letters tied with fishing line.
A faded river photo where he stood fly fishing with me,

Blurred with teenages kisses and spots of sun.
I carry the ache through all the years,
A heavy heart in another suitcase.

another suitcase by gregg price

the n3 feels like soft padding against
all the hard edges and
blue gilded hyenas
wafting through my dreams

the gentle twitter and wit
of my young companions
christened awesome 1 and
awesome 2 over dinner
last night
only parents know the sweetness

another suitcase packed quickly
another parade of rocket fuelled
superstars streaking through water
this is the world cup and
that was the world record

and now its over
and i feel like my father here
how he must have felt
seatbelts and sightlines of
cows and flatbeds

bob dylans throaty
weariness pushed up loud
declaring
its all good

back to the separate homes
home in the thin air
monday looming like a dagger
I dont want to finish this
like some silly movie