here, it rains
for days at at time,
the drops, they
form a blanket
i pull it close, over my nose,
earth wet trees wet scent, deeply primal
we all
(green and skin)
absorb the sky.
here, it rains
for days at at time,
the drops, they
form a blanket
i pull it close, over my nose,
earth wet trees wet scent, deeply primal
we all
(green and skin)
absorb the sky.
paper thin wings grow in fantastic colors
behind my shoulder blades.
eye spots deepen on the tops of each
and wink when i fly.
settling quietly on a leaf in a forest in old Russia
there is a sudden net upon me,
Nabokov! oh how he
drains my life, pins down my wings …
and with quiet precision,
i am immortal.
i am
a predator
beside a frozen lake
masquerading as an ocean
[we are all so phony]
slinking up to frozen fingers of light
lips licked in luscious anticipation
one ship one mile out is
my only witness
and it is too frozen in place
to stop me, or care.
a sudden chill –
i own nothing.
not even this love
or sweat
or all the piles of regret
i accumulate
or the quiet dust
i lay with
or the way we framed
our bedroom.
i take nothing with me
save this
one last thought –
your shadow leaving
is a distortion
of its former self.
I just want to relive the moment again.
Ravens win!
Streets filling, dancing and chanting in a flurry of snowy excitement,
beads bouncing around my shoulders,
a beer here, a purple shot there…
and every time they mention Baltimore from that confetti-filled dome
a swell of noise …
Relive the highs of every touchdown and anxiety of
“don’t let this slip away, man don’t let it slip away”
Relive 4 seconds giving way to
strangers high fiving, hugging,
all of us family in a city
known for grit and determination and connectedness as much as violence,
yes, we have a chip on our shoulder, yes we think the world is out to get us,
and yes,
last night… we were ON TOP OF THE WORLD.
believe in yourself
is the lesson
all drenched in a beautiful sea of purple.
(author is in the middle – we’re number 1!)
full moon, we shall have no w o r d s
tonight, all inhibitions obfuscated by your
veiled threats of rain
don’t brush them off
keep certain eyes off long legs clicking on heels down the cracked city
sidewalk, look past
all these unforgivable glances
between us shadowy figures swapping sips behind the
loading dock, us strangers
stretching by a brick wall
new hands tingling under a cloak of
hazed obscurity
It is a time to come together. Watch as the lights, even the littlest, show us how to shine –
hug your children, feel smoothness of such skin still without regret, disappointment, and
Know: the world will eventually end, yet we can hold hands with love in a moment
that will shine on and on as surely as moist breath and tears return to heaven as rain.
*for all those lost today in CT. our thoughts and love are with you.
His walls are thick with ivy,
and the stuffy immutable breaths of zealous opinions
climb contentedly, free from predation.
There is no new love here save
how aging fingers dig in deep rich soil to grow tiny
seeds, coaxing gently, more eager vines.
She sighs over heavy machinery, coal, ship dock hands
a headless apparition
from a more affluent era
her sequin flapper dress just
metal window frames rusted
a shimmer from broken glass
against the backdrop of a dark
modern October cloud bank
she once was someone statuesque
the men couldn’t take their eyes off.
Now, phantom, feel the wind blow straight through your spine.
Little poems are soul food~
you will feast as long as you
don’t let em get ya, don’t let em ever get ya.
You’ll live the colors that create life.
Don’t you let em lock ya up
with their nonsensical ramblings of ordinary thought.
Tell em: no meds;
you were born as stardust
and don’t need nothing more than that.
(from 2010)