Month: April 2011

Understand

it was what

he wasn’t saying

that I heard

and I wish

I’d had the words

but only

his Mama would

and I know

what he’d give

to have her here

to tell his troubles to

and she’d know

just what to do

“and they’d laugh

‘til they turned blue”

no more

and the sunlight

would stream

through the windows

of her country kitchen

and she wouldn’t waste

one minute

there’d be flour

everywhere

and pots bubbling

and chicken frying

and casseroles rising

and pies puffing

and lemons swimming in sweet tea

and he’d be whistling all the while

a happy tune

of better days

and it’d be

the best meal

he ever had

there

with his Mama

in her country kitchen

filled with words

of whispered wisdom

(I wrote this for Mitch Sneed

after we ran into each other at a yard sale in 2011.

Mitch is with his Mama now, July 2018)

TL

Obits

you’re born

and live a little

while

and somebody knows you

and nobody does

and you gather yourself

from “Great Expectations”

dark desperation

and hide yourself

behind a wall

and only on your knees

do you let it fall

and day turns tonight

and night turns today

and you chomp

about this

and that

and the other

and everybody loves you

and everybody hates you

and you get in the bed

and you close your eyes

and it’s the closest you’ll get

save the birth of your child

when you first fell in love

and the numbers turn

and you wake up

and you get out of bed –

whatever you call your bed

crib, twin, queen, king

car, street, ditch, bridge

and you go on …

at your best, at your worst

wounded or weary or whole

preceded by … survived by … restored by …

TL

Restless

the washer water

is rising to the line

the giant hands

that turn time

have cut into

the pie face

and taken

a generous slice

the dog

relieved himself

on the fern

and thought

it was funny

and that was

before coffee

and Myrtle the turtle

didn’t make it

her tiny funeral

last month

reminded me of

Spidy the cat

who went out

for a walk

and never came back

his elf bell collar

a warning to birds

was found in the forest

and whatever got him

wasn’t wearing a bell

TL