Author: Tamiko Lowery

Consider

when you

don’t know

a thing

about any thing

a form of utopia

an oblivion

to be oblivious

of things

not for a man

nor a woman

for adults are aware

of all things

the slightest thing

the abject thing

the base line

a stick in the sand

draw your dreams

only the moon

can laugh

plate and spoon

the cow’s a steak

three bears, three pigs

the golden goose

a tale to tell

even at Christmas

the glass slipper

does it fit your foot

better stories now

to tell your girl

let down your hair

and live

not a storied life

of fairies and tales

but of your own

write

even when

you can’t see the page

the snow falls

for a time

sticks

to the web work

the limbs

roots and blades

ponds and puddles

iced over

in a tray

all things thaw

the web catches

in the wind

the spider finds

another tree

does this

a thousand times

the coldest day

still the spider

will climb

TL

Progression

caught up

in the clock

the tick tock

the fall back

the spring forward

what time is it?

have to be there at

have to leave at

have to get up at

have to

take that down

have to

put that up

what time is it?

gotta go

where

gotta go

there

gotta get

what

gotta get

that

out of that

what do you need

what do you want

sure you know

under and over

to begin again

to be new again

to be in awe

of the earth

and its people

the nature of things

the breath in your body

the birth of your being

the feelings you feel

before and after

the mystery of not knowing

being somewhere you’ve never been

trying something you’ve never tried

the progression

a pendulum

how to proceed

as time turns you

inside out

outside in

the hour in which

we are  

with somewhere to be

not to be

TL

Unpredictable

‘tis

cold today

enough for a coat cold

and it might

rain today

enough for an umbrella rain

then again, might not

rain at all

alas, this is

the South

and it might

shine today

enough for shades shine

or might not

it could hail

golf balls

instead

TL

You Are

when you

sit by the sea  a l o n e

you are the sea

 

when you

watch the rain through the window

you are the drops

 

when you

float off your feet over the waves

you are the ocean

 

when you

skip stones across the riverbank

you are the ripple

 

when you

cry your truth in the valley low

you are the well

 

when you

toss your penny into the fountain there

you are the wish

TL

Obscurity

the untold

story

has no legion

letters

no dotted i

or crossed t

for certain things

in life

there are no words

TL

Woodall

she was

supposed to

blow out her candles

her 64 candles

this day

with her family

all around her

singing

but she got sudden sick

and went to the hospital

thinking she’d stay a few days

and go home

to her husband

but her body shut down

in one of those hospital rooms

and she died

with her family

all around her

crying

when night falls

they’ll go

and reach out to her

one last time

and he’ll feel like

a little boy … once more

needing her

to pick him up

and hold him tight

tell him it’s gonna be all right

and after it’s all over

and the preacher prays

that last prayer

and he goes home

to his wife and baby boy

he’ll feel like

a man

who has aged

too soon

TL

Rainbow Falls

tried this

once before

and turned

around

an hour in

got to that point

bricks and mortar

tell yourself

it’s ok

do it … another day

why not today

bleeding boots

whining when

sandal soles

that’s why

and they tell us

another hour

and a half

you’re there

and it’d be easy

if the trail

were smooth

and even

and dry

but it’s not

at all

resting on rocks

pulling up socks

twisting over rubble

sloshing through the muck

that plank bridge

and this is a vacation

12 miles

to watch

the water

f

a

l

l

and it hadn’t

a thing to do

with water

TL

Souvenir Shop

there was

a quality

of pitch

to her tone

a grittiness

at the bottom

of her laughter

the way she

talked

rhetorical

how she

lifted each

object

and turned it

over

said something

and when

she asked me

“where’re ‘ya from, dear?”

that was it

poor woman

had no idea

“I’m sorry …

you remind me …

of granny …”

TL

Marc Simont

I knew you

only

on the page

wielded there

by lead

and I was standing

at the shelf

a new mother

then

wrapped in wonder

at the beginning

of books

for her

picking off spines

and putting them back

row after row

when found

your tree

your girl

with the blue

watering can

your catch-me cat

your pacing dog

your use

of lifted light

and as I peeled

the pages back

I found

the sentiment

of the soul

made perfect

in the simplicity

of sketches

by a boy

of Paris birth

(Nov. 23, 1915 – July 13, 2013)

TL

Undone

when the day

had

undone at the seams

and left all

the stuffing on the floor

this time

she didn’t bend

or stoop

dropped the needle

in the hay

gave the thread to the spider

and walked away

to the trees

of fall

and found a spot of sun

to sit

a twig to twirl

or not

the running wind

ripped up the path

wiping away

more than dead leaves

TL

Confection

made it

to the store

got out

and bought a pink

marshmallow

and took it home

and unzipped it

and admired it

for a moment

before I pounded it

square

with a pair of boxing gloves

bought before the marshmallow

satisfied with the topping

took the mitts off

and slid under

the square

and baked for

almost 45 minutes

TL

Morning Rush

got his window

rolled

and flicks his cig

and I watch it

bounce and roll

to stop

the drift a version

just went through

red light, green light

his pick-up truck

nothing but dust

move on

to fill the tank

press the buttons

yes

no

and look up

at the slats

a corner of the covering

belongs to that bird

and he watches

that woman

walk to her car

with that big bag

of tater chips

that gulp drink

what he’d give

for a chip

crank the tank

watch the needle

hit the gas

the brake

see the leaves

rush upstream

like swimming salmon

a nest of swarming

honey bees

TL

Travel

the chimes

hang

still as air

pipes without

the faintest puff

circular strung

teetering

off balance

the disk for

a pressed lip

against four faces

vying for breath

a single spin

across the floor

the compass

pitched

like a ship

on its side

righted in India

TL

Selection

there’s

a poem

I tend

to read

whenever

I want

to feel

something

and the other

day

I got around

to looking up

the writer

‘cause I was

curious

about him

and the first

glimpse

of biographical information

noted his birth

but not his death

so I thought he was

still alive

and I’m reading

all about him

more than 30 books

professor at Syracuse

$50,000 prize

and then I’m surfing

this other site

to read more

about his life

and I see then

that he was

87

three days

from now

TL

Scars

the cherry

motel

used to be

red

remember it

being red

and it was red

for a while

not now

though

now when

I drive past it

I see blue

and she was

in grade school

then

a little adult

she was

and so

when it got

to be

so bad

the adult told

the child

you must leave

and the child

listened

and drove

the little adult

to the little motel

and they lived there

the two of them

for a little while

and each day

the bruises

got lighter

and lighter

until one day

you couldn’t

see them

black

no more

you just saw

blue

TL

Past Tense

was

he was

she was

what was

it was

was

what a sad

small verb

was

TL

Paramedics

the line

brakes

in procession

the seconds grainy

in glass

the lights roll past

flashing …

medics on the scene

50-year-old, white male

on the casino floor

dead on arrival

TL

Granny E

by the third

Monday

you will have

been gone

a year

and only

since September

has he been back

in the TV room

forced by an infected toe

in need of elevation

he’d been avoiding

your empty chair

as you well know

hasn’t moved

your stuff

too much

save a few pieces

he gave the girls

it’s hard, Granny,

it’s just hard

it takes him

forever

to get dressed

and make his way

but he does it

everyday

you’d be proud

and proud of the kids, too

they’ve kept going

even when

they didn’t wanna go

but bills have to be paid

somebody’s gotta fix supper

the clothes need laundering

the dog needs feeding

the mail has to go out

the grass needs shaving

the floor needs mopping

the calls need an answer

the trash has to go out

well, you know how it is

they just … stay busy

Scott’s doing ok

still cries when

that song comes on

the radio

and late at night

 when we’ve all

gone to bed

he stays awake

with you

TL

“Away Above”

after all

the drops

that fell

Roy G Biv

showed his smile

upside

in the cloud

arched over

the Second Avenue

bridge

so close I could of

reached up

to touch

the violet

TL

Tough Love

he thinks

shooting doves

will make it

what it was …

better

and he’s mad

we ain’t coming

and won’t take no

knows what buttons

to press

blames his buddy’s wife

for his buddy’s absence

all along

yeah, what’s new

hard headed

and whinier

than any woman

he’ll tell ‘ya

all day

why his life’s

thatta way

he didn’t come

from money

bases were loaded

and he dropped

the ball … for her

and he thinks

that big ‘ole house

he bought

on all that land

makes her happy

makes his boys happy

makes him happy

but happy shouldn’t

be this hard

can’t tell him nothing

though

end of that bottle …

no, it ain’t gonna bring

your daddy back

ain’t gonna hold your family

tight at night

ain’t gonna take that hurt

you’ve been holding

outta here

ain’t gonna make-up for a childhood

that wasn’t your fault

people kill themselves

in myriad ways

quick and clean

slow and muddy

and it ain’t nobody

who can put you back

together

but the one

who tore you apart

TL