Skip to content

Month: August 2015

Salt

Salt

maybe if

I didn’t know

maybe I could get

some sleep

and dream again

of something

soft

deeply down

not a surface scratch

of daylight dozing

a zombie stare

into the middle of nowhere

I see my peers there

in pretense

they, too, are disappointed

for Christmas lasts

but a day

when you first believed

there wasn’t a receipt

time I believe

time is what I know

to be true

maybe the only truth

you have this time

this time given to you

in a glass bottle

handspun

and you take it

and chunk it

into the bluest sea

and hope for the best

as you step bare

across all that sand

there

spilt into a glassy sea

that shimmers

and looms at night

now, they sit

at traffic lights

moving in mechanic waves

across a dark abyss

where the moon moans

and grapples with gravity

retreat

and return

TL

The Hours

The Hours

we live

a long distance

a short turn

a middle mile

and the history books tell

the stories

of how people were

the times they lived in

died in

what they faced

what they had to overcome

war and famine

persecution and property

the selling of someone

the judgment of belief

or disbelief

the taking of a life

were it not your own

men

women

and children

too much to atone

there is no present

the past has not provided

“a small world …

after all”

TL

Forward

Forward

remember when

walking backwards

was something new

and you showed it off

to blue

but he already knew

was way ahead of you

now his back’s against the wall

and he won’t move

TL

Cup in Saucer

Cup in Saucer

there is

a pond

of glass

the mist

figure eights

broken by the sip

of a stained lip

pressed into

the rim

of a heated kiss

in need

of cooling

TL

Letting Go

Letting Go

think my

window

‘s down

can’t close

to remember

‘til it rains

un-warn

and then

everything inside

gets good

and wet

and floats on out

the crack

in the ceiling

to a place

I never needed

after all

TL

A Moment in Time

A Moment in Time

first boat ride

was a canoe

and i sat there

in the middle

of the two

staring at the water lilies

fascinated by floating flowers

i couldn’t convey

that day

out there on the water

feeling connected to nature

thinking we’d always be

together

gliding along

like swans

only now do I understand

the depth

for the canoe is gone

and the two of ‘em

never got back in the boat

and the child

in the middle

got old

and hasn’t seen

a floating flower since

but still wants to …

still wants to get back

in the boat

and glide

TL

When We Drive

When We Drive

took a detour

from the traffic

adjusted the seat

lifted the wheel

and she wasted no time

climbing over the console

to assume her throne

while I work the pedals

she works the wheel

and off we go

round and round

merry-go-round

and the bird gets outta the way

and the puddle

gets a hit

‘cause she don’t miss

and the butterfly

disappears right quick

and the rabbits know

to stay put

and the worms well

it’s tough being a worm

and she loves that song

turn it up!

singing along

laughing like hyenas

round and round

we go

nice and slow

“faster, mama,

can’t we go any faster!”

yeah, no

TL

Ripple Effect

Ripple Effect

the sound of the sea

calls to me

the gurgle of a stream

meets me

the vibration of a lake

draws me

the rolling of a river

charges me

the sheets of rain

follow me

the pockets of puddles

empty me

the spray of fountains

wish me

the ritual of a bath

centers me

the stretch of a pool

pushes me

the cascade of a waterfall

stills me

the trail of a tear

carries me

TL

Memories Maketh

Memories Maketh

do things

hold memories

or do you

put the memory

in a thing

a house has no memory

but the people in it – do

and when they leave

they take the memories with them

but the house has no memory

of them

and all the things

stored inside the house

have no memory

of ever being used

or packed

or stacked

or shelved

or buried

but the people

who keep these things – do

and when they leave

the things

they take the memories with them

but the things have no memory

of them

people tend to hoard memories

seemingly never satisfied

never enough

make a moment more

make it less

remake it

replace it

rewind it

revolve it

place it here

put it there

give it more light

less light

no, don’t touch it!

leave it there

but he’s gone

and he’s never coming back

but she’s gone

and she’s never coming back

but that’s all I have … left

of him

of her

of them

what about the memory

do you need that thing

to remember them by

if you lost it

would you not remember them anymore

yes, but …

I need it

I need to hold on

to it

so, don’t touch it!

leave it there

all right, ok, we’ll leave it there

we won’t touch it

but I’m going over here

I’ll be over here

if you need me

right here

if you need me

but I can’t see you

over the stack

yeah, but

you can hear me, right

do you hear me

yeah, I hear ‘ya

TL