Both after reading this heartfelt work and then being blessed to hear it read by the author, I was left with the question: "why on earth did we ever relegate grief to be something private and hidden from view?"
Continued...
Elaine courageously & authentically invites us into an intensely personal journey of grief and loss, with seamless integration of melodic song and vivid imagery that combine to evoke emotions with every turn of the page.
Clint, Calgary, Alberta
THE SPACE BETWEEN US: POEMS & PAINTINGS
(C$ 5.00 shipping)
In this hauntingly illustrated debut collection by Elaine Ellis, readers are taken on a harrowing journey through tragedy, addiction, and loss. Each poem in the collection stands on its own, but is also woven together with all of the others to create a longer narrative poem that is the book. Readers will feel like they are going on a journey with the poet through the emotions and questions that attend the tragic loss of a loved one. They will emerge with a sense of how fragile and beautiful life is. Elaine Ellis is grateful for your purchase. She hopes that this book will help you on your own journey. This book is also available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Chapters Indigo, Kobo, Apple Books, and many other online bookstores.
A fantastic account of the many layers of grief, especially when mixed with the complexity of addiction. Elaine's work is relatable and full of authentic feelings. I would recommend this to anyone experiencing any kind of loss!
Johanna, Calgary, Alberta
After attending a reading of Elaine's first book of poetry and paintings, I not only purchased a copy for myself, but also for a friend who was grieving a loss of her own.
Ainsley, Calgary, Alberta
Poetry Excerpts: The Space Between Us
Silent
Silent
Silent
Silent—
Wasn't sure what to say
Silient—
Would it have mattered,
Anyway
Silent—
A reign of silence
Existed
Persisted
Between us
Silent—
What would you say
Silent—
If you knew about—
Today...
Cold
Silent
Silent
Cold—
Fingers
A body with no soul
Cold—
A shell
With no host home
Cold—
Uh
Poor
Likeness
Of
One
One—
Who never ran
Cold
One—
Who now lies
Cold...
now
Silent
Climbing
Flowers—
Breathtaking flowers
Arranged all around
Poised just so
Never more to grow
Beauty—
And—
Ashes—
Now
Climbing
Climbing
Climbing
A swing set, a big grin, a young, determined chin. Full of promise,
nothing broken, climbing up
and over, back then.
Memories
Climbing
Memories
Memories—
So many memories
Buried deep
in a sea of years
The number that include you and me
Must exceed the grains of sand
On the shore
Yet—
The same ones
Keep washing up
On the banks of my recollection
Amusing anecdotes
Bitter betrayals
The same simple
Fragments
Litter the beach
Like common, broken shells
But—
I"m searching....
Addict
Climbing
Memories
Addict—
Gotta
Get your fix
Usin'
A lot of—
Little tricks
Changing
Like a chameleon
When symptoms
Are on the rise
I'm searching
For the truth
Among
The litany of lies
Not possible
To see it
In the glaze
Of your eyes...
Gravity
Hard to Imagine
Gravity
Gravity—
Like gravity
You were destined
To fall
When
That corrosive compound
First entered your cell walls
Not sure when or how or why
It became
The apple
Of your eye
All that's certain
Is that within
That forbidden fruit
Lay a pernicious worm
That consumed all of you
Leaving behind...
Whole
Hard to Imagine
Gravity
When we lowered you down
Into the cold, bleak ground
Everyone wished
That you would
Rest in peace
As if
All we can hope for
Is some kind of
Bliss-
Full
Slumber
But I imagine
You've landed on your feet
You're dancing somewhere
Way up high
Just over the sky...
Hard to Imagine
Hard to Imagine
Hard to Imagine
Hard to imagine you now,
living. When all we have is
then. But, someday, I'll know,
Someday, I'll see—
You and me. When—
Watercolour & Ink Paintings
