Left Behind
in six lanes
of traffic
in the spring of the year
somebody’d lost
their pieces
along the side of the road
there was a shoe
it looked like a good shoe
there was a shirt
it looked white
or maybe it was blue
there were other things, too
but it all went by so fast
colors blurred
only that there were
things
scattered things
left on the side of the road
and it felt like rain
coming down
TL
Bridges
he believed
in the magic
of great love
and wrote about it
in such a way
that it resonated
in the heart of the reader
this notion that two ordinary people
coming from two different directions
one a world traveler and one who’d never been anywhere
could meet
on an ordinary day
in the middle of their lives
and experience an extraordinary love
beyond reasoning
beyond reality
beyond circumstance
“it all fades away”
(Robert James Waller, 77, March 10, 2017)
TL
Butterflies
from
the very
moment
of our infancy
we become
but a memory
of our former selves
there is no returning
to any state-of-being
in the original form
the mind remembers
the sights and sounds and smells
the taste and touch
it can be conjured up
but it cannot be re-lived
as it was
an old man can return to his boyhood bed
and lie down and go to sleep
but will wake up not as a boy
the body of the boy and the mind of the boy
is gone
but the feeling is still there
an old lady can go to her closet and pick out
the dress she wore
and put it back on
but when she stands in front of the mirror
the girl is gone
but the feeling is still there
once you leave a state-of-being
you become infinitely more
than you were
the whole of life
is connected
in transformation
TL
Drained
in the wee
hours of
the morning
your little blue
fish
floated away
TL
Springtime
in the quiet
stillness
spring grows
stronger
a prelude
to summer
and an ending
to winter
perhaps nowhere
does it seem
such
TL
as i am
when i was
a child
i disappeared
inside myself
and locked the door
it was a way to cope
with the uncontrollable
circumstances i found myself in
i felt like a prisoner
time forgot
and it didn’t matter where i went
or what i achieved
or what dreams i had
i couldn’t escape
even when i physically had
moved out and on
the inner child
was still stuck
in uncontrollable circumstances
beyond my control
my need for control in all things
is apparent
I crave simplicity
simple things like taking a walk
i took a lot of walks growing up
i felt at peace in nature
there was connection there
an unspoken truth
i knew no matter how dark the night
the sun would rise in the morning
i knew that daffodils would go away and come back again
like the monarchs
i knew the trees offered shade and strength
i knew the sun would kiss the water
and diamonds would appear
like stars in the sky
i knew the wind would fill me
the rain renew me
the sunlight sustain me
these were things i could count on
things that didn’t require
anything of me
for they were free
those were the gifts
He gave
to me
TL
Into the Night
the black sky
spit out the stars
and when they hit the ground
they shattered
into drops
that disappeared
into the dirt
years go by
24 years
and a forest appears
bringing birds
that sing
TL
Fields
she colors
the sun yellow
and brings down the ray
to the green grass
that moves like the leaves
in the weeping trees
fluid like clouds in blue water
I lie down
and pick a flower
and twirl it round
and watch a squirrel scurry up
down
where the birds are
the turtle takes its time
to get to the other side
the rabbit’s chewing a carrot
the cows are chewing grass
the horse is chewing hay
the ladybug’s chewing a leaf
a butterfly takes a dance
across the wind
the hummingbird checks in
there are shadows on the ground
mountains in the distance
a garden full of roses
red apples in the trees
purple grapes on the vine
a path that leads
to a cottage
the windows are yellow
like the daffodils by the door
that come back waving
each year
TL
Dollhouses
it never
occurred to me
why
I love dollhouses
so much
why a grown adult
would rather have a dollhouse
with a miniature family
and all its miniature pieces
over diamonds and gold
a dollhouse symbolizes
something constant
something secure
it’s a lovely, happy, peaceful place
to live
the orphan in me
loves the little family
that lives in the little house
with all its little things
the mom in the kitchen
the dad at the table
the baby in its crib
they’re all together
forever
TL
…
she sat
by the sea
TL
Hallway
after you
went and died
your son gave me
a packet of pictures of you
for my birthday
I saw you as a young man
but my favorite
was the picture of when
you were a boy
in a blazer and tie
the look in your eyes
was the same I remembered
I put that picture in a frame
and put it by my bed
‘cause it helped me sleep at night
remembering you like that
it helped me deal with your death
waking up and going to bed
and walking around
and around
it’s been a year
a little over a year
and it doesn’t hurt like it did
I hung your picture on the wall
‘cause I can finally sleep at night
without you there
beside me
TL
Flickering
there are
violets in Tanzania
blue violets
picked in the mines
the darker the day
the more brilliant the color
like a diamond
in a black box
a star at night
TL
Unparalleled
the aging process
is a quiet thing
like a knife
that runs along the skin
first you don’t even realize
just stings and goes away
you go make plans
on summer days
and all the while
the cut creeps down
the middle
and there’s an ache
that wasn’t there
and you forget
what you were gonna say
the phone rings
so you talk about that
and it’s tomorrow already
your child is grown
that place on the corner closed
the two-lane turned four
so and so just had a baby
you gotta find something to wear
to that thing
when did it get so cold
foot’s cramping
the knee stops running
stuck on a wheel
hair’s losing color
skin’s losing layers
the neck starts dropping
the face has a ripple effect
that spreads all over
the body
you’d rather stay home
and watch it on television
yeah, it hurts
to get old
I’ve watched it
on others
saw it for myself
the slow decay
and what it does
to you
mentally
physically
emotionally
the cut gets torn
wide open
like a broken zipper
on a jacket
you can’t close
when did it get so cold
colder still
TL
The Lessons
here
is where
i remember things
and turn them over
sometimes it takes me years
to understand
the smallest thing
the study of it
in its nature
that even then
i was learning something
useful
that i would need
for later on
TL
“Eye of the Tiger”
last night
SEC football fans
got a title show
and they didn’t have to pay for HBO
mere minutes
can change history
as any fighter knows
Alabama did not tote that trophy home
what a way to start 2017
in a Sports Illustrated piece
I read about the opposing coach
and how he showed his team
a clip of Rocky II
see, that just ain’t fair
you can’t mess with that mindset
they all thought they were Rocky out there
and not even the Tide can roll over
dat
TL
Rambling
the pumpkin
on the porch
looked like
a scoop of ice cream
that splat off the cone
leftover from October
like a tree in December
all the shipments of roses in February
are dust by March
that’s how it is
a picture can’t capture it
it’s not the same
the weight of a pumpkin in its prime
its bright orange color
speaks of pies and hayrides
and then it’s time to pick out a tree
or find the fake one
and dress it up
from head to toe
then strip it bare
and toss it to the curb
or stuff it back in the corner
the glitter of New Years
has been swept up
off the floor
all the shelves are full
of hearts and flowers
and stuffed teddy bears
those stupid commercials
a diamond is not forever
there’s the idea of love
and then there’s real love
everybody thinks they’re in love
until they’re not
I still think
if you truly love somebody
you will love them
for all of your life
it won’t be a choice
TL
Natural Light
the branches
are wet with rain
and chilled with ice
I see them winking
in my window
a string of twinkle lights
plugged into the sun
they need no night
TL
Mesmerize
think
I know
better now
for better do I know
myself
when once I would deny
repute or dispel
all the adjectives
think I know better
now
the truth
the telescopic lens
tunnels to the moon
it cuts out all the stars
and space
when one wonders
of the galaxy
beyond one’s lighted face
none of us belong
below
there is a lift of all
to rise above
such sorrow
and hear the bells
that toll
a compilation piece
of season
silent in its movement
like aging
at our birth
the disappearance
that is death
TL
Luggage
I walked
to the water
and knelt by the sea
the suitcase I carry
got too heavy for me
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the woolly blanket
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the dear diary
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the open empty jar
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the dried dark rose
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the cinder block brick
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the worn out right shoe
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the worn out left shoe
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the broken crack mirror
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the soft hard snowball
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the winter white candle
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the gold gilded music box
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the picture and its place
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the one-way ticket
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the hermit crab shell
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the black dress I wore
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
I said to the envelope
and I threw it out to shore
I don’t need that anymore
TL
Work
all along
there are moments
that stop us
humans need that
the breathtaking
and the heartbreaking
these moments make you reaccess
internally
as you take it all in
where you are in life
how happy or how unhappy you might be
what you love about your life
and what you don’t
nothing jest happens
or is
without a bit of work
you’re not jest healthy ‘cause you woke up and took a breath
it takes work
your space isn’t jest clean and clear and calm jest ‘cause it is
it takes work
you don’t jest reach your goals jest ‘cause you wrote ‘em down
it takes work
you don’t jest become more than you are by standing still
it takes work
you don’t jest fall in love and stay in love
it takes work
you don’t jest plant a garden and walk away and expect it to grow
it takes work
you don’t jest up and understand how you came to be
it takes work
you don’t jest change yourself for the better
without working on yourself
every day
it takes work
TL