Month: June 2018

The Moth

betrayed

would you then fall

away

and disappear

into the mountains

sit somewhere by the sea

and forget how forgotten

flowers fade in vases

ripe fruit rots

in the bowl

the wind is roaring

through the field

no trees to shield

or shelter

quiet is the night

that whispers early in the morn

and the birds are still singing their song

as the white moth dies a slow death at the door

and if I could talk to him

I’d ask him why

why does he keep coming back

to the flame

knowing he’ll get burned

time and again

is it because he’s stupid

or full of hope

or blind

or all of the above

who knows

or maybe after being burned

by so many beautiful brilliant bulbs

he just stopped feeling the singe

and became numb to it

this can happen overnight

which, of course, means the beautiful brilliant bulbs

can’t hurt him anymore

as he lies dying at my door

he doesn’t hurt anymore

‘cause he’s finally free

to fly

TL

Returning

when something

breakable

breaks

like the heart

it cracks open

creating space

and as time goes by

the space spreads out

f u r t h e r

this gives the soul somewhere

to wander about

as it waits its turn

to go home

TL

The Dying

in the abyss

one searches

the dark

in a timeless night

forgetting all things

backward

and forward

all the steps

it took

to get there

and then you’re there

at the ending

when all you want

is the beginning

when you were first born

shaking and lost

and somebody wrapped you up

and held you close

and you could hear their heart beating

and it was familiar to you

this soothing rhythmic sound

from far and away

and then you were asleep

TL

A Wrong Turn

she woke up

that morning

70

he woke up

that morning

32

she had never met him

before

he had never met her

before

for whatever reason

they were both traveling

the same road

that night

at exactly the same time

and for whatever reason

he was driving in the wrong direction

she had no time to react

they died on impact

TL

The Wind

the blades

of grass

clean shaven

down the stretch

after the rain

the black bird struts

his stuff

the squirrels race

to the top

turtles are sunning

on the bank

minnows moving

in the pond

a butterfly remembers

when

it had no wings

and wastes no time

resting on flowers

as if it knows

the wind will take it

wherever it goes

TL

Summer

in a single

s e c o n d

the sun fell

soft

into the sea

leaving suds

to wash and fold

the sand

that dried between

my toes

TL

U.S. Navy RE-1 Heath Phillips

I salute you

for your courage

for your bravery

for your heart

you never fought

in war

and yet you

saved so many lives

more than you’ll ever, ever

realize

may you finally

sleep at night

and wake up

in the morning

free

TL

The Beach

there’s an endless rack

of white lace

rows as far

as the eye

I spend 5 days

slipping dresses on

and off

taking my time

pearls

or no

my bare feet

tip toe

across silk

I shed something

sad

as I return

the dresses

I wore

and put the pearls

back

in their shell

TL