Author: Tamiko Lowery

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

Grateful

driving along

my mind

on towers

the suffering

of September

that helpless

feeling

that never wanes

when suddenly

I’m snapped back

to the present

four-lanes of flying traffic

what …

what is that kitten doing in the road

and I just knew

knew, knew, knew

there would be a black smudge

on the turn-around

braced myself for it

as I passed all those cars

and I’m staring hard

but there’s nothing to see

look to the right

a footstep from the road

there the kitten

a morning shadow

on green grass

too spent to make a move

looks up at me

helplessly

and I close my eyes

thank you …

TL

Like That

like when GM

tanked

like when the ocean

was oil

like when sports lost

at the ATM

like when construction workers

had nothing to construct

like when fast food

replaced slow food

like when prices at the pump

became a bill

like when terrorists

grounded planes

like when military service

was forgotten

like when children

don’t get to be children

like when weapons

are misused

like when humanity

is compromised

like when people forget

how to think for themselves

like when young people lose direction

and old people have to take it

like when there aren’t enough homes

or enough rooms at the shelter

like when fighters

don’t get back up

like that …

TL

Sweeping

sometimes

I sweep the porch

for no reason

really

I know the leaves

and dead bugs

and dusty dirt

will be swept back

before I turn in

that night

but that’s ok

I sweep it

anyway

TL

Joan Rivers

and after all

the plastic

she was never

fake

TL

Watermelon

what once

resembled

a tiny tree

in a pint-size pot

has grown not up

but out

covering a portion

of lawn

in vines

that “Jack in the Beanstalk”

could climb

had there been no boulder

and each day

the boulder gets

a bit bigger

bit broader

like a swelled head

that heard

every word

she ever said

TL

Order Up

he has

a paperboy cap

that covers

a head of hair

that once held

a shade

and he matches

his cap

to his clothes

and I watch him

stroll

in that purposeful way

gone is the day

when he sat at the table

and his mother fed him full

maybe his wife, too

now, he wakes up

and gets dressed

and puts on his cap

and heads out the door

 to the burger joint

down the street

where they know

what he likes

before he can say,

“egg”

TL

Obesity

well, that’s nice

I say

so, you gave it all

away

and they took it

you say

all of it

well, that’s nice

I say

so, where are they

I don’t know

you say

well, you must

have an inkling

I say

didn’t you buy

their ticket

their passport

their luggage

yes, but …

they were in a hurry

you see

and forgot to wave

“bye” to me

but, don’t worry

you say

they’ll be back

some day

they always come back

well, that’s nice

I say

I can see why

they’d come back

yeah …

you say

so, what do you do

when they’re away

I say

don’t you get lonely

oh, no, I have plenty of stuff to do

don’t worry

you say

well, that’s nice

I say

at least you have plenty of stuff

to do

when they’re away

yeah …

you say

TL

What More

the discipline

of the day

is a myriad

motion

that moves us

all along

in one direction

centered in one form

our well being

is found

and found again

in the effort made

and made again

small on surface

a dot of dust

on a table wide

though it would seem so

insignificant

in the pendulum swing

what is more

than this and this and this

a kind word

a noble deed, a measured thought

these and these and these

are what makes us …

the memory of us

significant

TL