Month: February 2018

Don’t

I’m too sad

to speak

so don’t talk

daffodils don’t talk

but they say things

I’ve watched them

in a storm

and saw them

the morning after

standing

their bulbs lit

on the ground

TL

Whence

I stare

at water

the way it moves

or doesn’t

but can

like liquid in a kettle

or a bath

I stare

at fire

the way it starts off

like a blink

on a cake

and ends up spitting out sparks

grilling trees

into char

one section at a time

‘til there’s nothing left

but ash

I stare

at clouds

until they make sense

and then pull apart

like cotton candy

at a fair

sometimes they just sit there

like a marshmallow in hot chocolate

slowly melding

I stare

at snow

how it covers everything it touches

then disappears

like the rain

I stare

at the wind

even though I can’t see it

I feel it

running through my hair

or barely breathing

against my cheek

it can make a Monarch butterfly

miss its flight

to Mexico

and carry a kid’s balloon

so far off

it becomes

a tear

falling

from Heaven

TL

Faith

a packet

of seeds

and some

soil

TL

Kane Brown

man

I love your sound

heard you in my sleep

music moving through my mind

a gift given

in your darkest hour

when you had nothing …

you had everything

put your pain on the page

and lifted it

stadium high

love ‘em all

the whole album

Cold Spot

Better Place

Learning

but track 13

I mean

c’mon

the melody

is everything

TL

Resilient

a tree

can stand

so strong

and steady

for a thousand years

its bark

once soft

with scratches

the branches bending

in leafy green

transforms

in time

the elements rewind

fire and rain

do damage

a relentless wind

rips off every leaf

a brush of lightning

a trail of termites

an axe at the back

takes its toll

seasons shed

ice over

thaw in spring

new growth appears

like butterflies

and bumblebees

and chainsaws

and even thousand-year-old trees

can fall

slam to the ground

in seismic vibration

a tree no more

becomes instead

timber

lumber

firewood

furniture

or framing

hardwood flooring

a door

a boat to float away in

statues

baseball bats

bow and arrow

skis

hockey sticks

a coffin

or simply a sheet

of paper

to write on

draw on

or fold

into

origami

chains

and airplanes

for nothing

ever does

remain

the same

TL

As Time Goes By

for the rest

of their time

on earth

they will wait

as day folds into night

and night folds into day

and the seasons become one

they will wait

they will never stop waiting

no matter where they go

or what they do

or what happens

or doesn’t happen

they will be there

waiting …

for their children

to come home

from school

TL

sparrows

the birds on

Butcher Row

just wanna be fed

off the crumbs

you don’t eat

their dreams are trees

the branch closest to the sun

is the warmest one

and when it rains

as it does

there’s something to drink

a puddle for bathing

the flight dries the feathers

and the view at the top

is not

just for an Eagle

or an Owl

or an Angel

TL

In the Window

there were

stars

reflected on black windows

mirrors that see

across the street

nobody lives there anymore

they turned off the electricity

and shut the door

their mail sent to the North Pole

what would they have wanted

you don’t actually see the wind blowing

only what’s in the way

across the street

is a restaurant

where people go to eat

and say things out loud

and when there’s nothing to say

there’s music

songs on rotation

the clang of cleanup

chairs scraping the floor

ice hitting bottom

you can think so loud it shows

so many things you never say

or said

everybody dies

but not everybody

lives

TL

Therein

we are

complex creatures

that seek simplicity

in the profoundness

of place

where we are

at the age we are

on the sliding scale

they say the world is round

circular

maybe unending

we all begin again

I am a student

as I have always been

and will be

TL

The Guy in Gray

warmer than

it was

yesterday

the sidewalks converge

walkers

strollers

pets

bikers

joggers

and the guy in gray

looks new

his eyes downcast

he’s jogging

and it’s hard when you’re heavy

especially uphill

before 8 a.m.

but what he doesn’t know

is the effect

people watch people

in a split second

the mind sees

motivation

motivation in action

and files it

for later

TL

By the Dozen

a vase

of white roses

slowly die

by day

not a natural death

cut short

and hauled down the highway

to the market

for sale

gone is the sun

the wind

rain

four walls

without grass or leaves

bought for their beauty

beheld

a sentiment, a gesture

a notion long held

the boy at the door

the lover in love

the married man

roses require

no sonnets

or dragons slain

cut and dried

pick a color

any color

TL

The Sea at Night

the light

changes

from red

behind a lone rig

we crawl

and it feels like a train

slow moving

reminds me of rain

gobbling on glass

I could drift

on over

and pass

buy why

I’m not in a hurry

tonight

got Olivia Mae on repeat

the moon’s looming large

and I can’t count the stars

not alone

when I’m alone

encapsulated in my car

my hand at the wheel

I could go anywhere

past the limits

find my way to the beach

take off my coat

and shoes

walk down to the edge

where the water pulls at the sand

and stand there

‘til I can’t see my toes

no more

TL