Ink in the Blood Posts

Quest

sHe

sets sail

at sundown

 

the water’s cool

and the wind is high

like that yellow pie

 

eyes a distant star

and turns toward it

seems so far

 

will the vessel hold

nobody knows

you’re either in

or you’re out

 

is there really

a choice

 

at the start

the shell is

smooth

and cuts the water

like a knife

in time

the blade turns dull

and leaves no wake

the shell is different now

no longer fragile

and familiar

battered in a red sea

and badly burned

wounded in the water

no bearing

 

still the star

comes out at night

a speck of white light

 

many moons later

the sailor changes course

and sets sight

for shore

where the sand is shining

and the palms are waving

and a cup of coconut

is pirate’s bounty

 

one last linger

before the final push

a shell without a sailor

 

at sunup

“it is well”

TL

Rain

hosepipe

in the sky

opened wide

 

watched the curtain fall

like i was small

 

found a good seat

 

saw the smoke

crawl across concrete

as if an urn had overturned

and scattered ashes

out to sea

 

summer sun

happy haze

wall of water

falling fast …

know it

doesn’t last

TL

Gems

string of macaroni

full of facets and fire

they hold the light

TL

 

Blink

lines are long

so are the complaints

get to the front

“I’m going on break”

 

roll at a crawl

deposit drop

get to the front

to sit there and sigh

“Sorry for the wait,

receipt machine’s on the blink”

 

blink, blink, blink

too much time to think

 

why hurry

where do you have to be

really

sand is running out

look at old faces

ask old questions

no answers there

just a blink

 

school teaches: conform

life teaches: re-form

over and over and over

blink

toddler to teen

blink

single to married

blink

married to parents

blink

parents to grandparents

blink

grandparents to great-grandparents

blink

great to grave

 

do you know any more

than you did before

are you really that much smarter

than you were at 16

 

“love is love”

 

don’t blink

TL

 

My Weakness

untouched toys

scattered on the floor

tiny tornado

out the door

 

left me a wreck

stuck at goodbye

 

knew it was coming

saw the lightning

heard the thunder

felt the rumble

 

still crumbled

 

wasn’t prepared

for the gust

how hard

it would rain

how long

it would last

TL

Daily Grind

can’t even

do that

 

the phone’s ringing

someone’s at the door

the dog’s barking

the birds are squawking

the dryer buzzer’s ringing

the oven timer’s beeping

 

and I’m getting old

and everyone around me is getting old

and my patience is frayed

and I don’t want to talk to you

or anybody or anyone or anything

 

ever feel like that

 

like you don’t want someone to understand

cause they don’t

they don’t even understand themselves

let alone you

but they want to pretend to

and that gets you

 

so you run

around

in circles

until

you’re too

tired

to give

a damn

so what

if

everyone’s

a liar

even you

who cares

tomorrow’s

another

day

even if

it

isn’t

true

TL

 

Ferris Wheel

kids don’t think

they do

 

grown-ups think

that’s what they do

they

think

and think

and think

re-think

over-think

wheel-think

back to square one

never get anything done

forget about

fun

TL

Reject Roses

there’s a store

that sells

necessities

 

like bread and milk and eggs

 

but my buggy

turns left

 

where the roses

need rescue

 

not the ones

at the front

dressed

in velvet

perfection

 

but the ones in the back

that sit like sad sacks

stamped with a neon sticker

discount

 

take them home

cut a fresh straw

and dip them

in a cool drink

 

on their last leg

they bloom

as if they

belong

in a vase

TL

 

You and Me

fell in love

watching a waterfall

 

sailed away

in a rusted boat

 

laughed

like lovers do

 

spoke as if

there’s only

here and now

 

wrote our dreams

in the sand

 

grain by grain

built our castle

on a cliff

facing forward

 toward the sea

 

to that great

unknown

 

somehow

we hit gold

TL

Sunset

watched

an old man

bend

to the will

of the reed

 

things he’s done

a certain way

hard to see

them slip away

 

but the current

takes us all

 

if I knew

what to say

to him

I’d say it

 

but our view

out the window

is skewed

 

while I see the trees

he sees the leaves

                                               falling

TL

Running

smoking heat

frigid frost

dancing rain

wild wind

not a whisper

felt it all

morning mug

afternoon cup

evening glass

drunk it all

lift and fall

my sole

play my song

let it roll

away the rest

round and round

edge of miles

disappeared

for a little while

TL

Hospitality

they outlawed

smoking

 

at a packed place …

a place that needs a smoke

 

the most

 

folks don’t go there

to light up

 

they go spent

with worry

sick with sadness

 

for somebody they love

is laid up in bed

in the worst way,

and there’s nothing they can do

but wait it out

and hope their somebody

gets to go home

 

soon

 

so they pray

a silent prayer

 

and sit

with strangers

 

and walk

in circles

 

and think

about all the things

they haven’t faced

 

what if their somebody

doesn’t make it out

 

alive

 

then what

 

anybody got a light

 

anybody

TL

Where’d My Baby Go

4 o’clock

And you in your

footie pajamas

 

Hard to know

It won’t always

Be like this

 

Me looking down at you

You looking up at me

 

Can’t bear it !!!!!!

 

Yet mothers do

they look up

at their

sons

and daughters

and act like

it didn’t kill ‘em

to watch them

go

TL

 

R.I.P.

Went to bed

Last night

Couldn’t

Catch a wink

 

Bed to Box

Is all I thought

 

Stared at the clock

Tick Tock

 

Fill up

The waking hours

 

To avoid

The shock

 

Bed to Box

Is all I thought

TL

 

Small Favors

her home

was where

she took

her makeup off

where she could sit

without a smile

and sip a glass of red

and light her cigarette

without feeling

like an ash

where she could lift

a book and lay it down

be busy

doing nothing

and feel like

it was something

TL

Fireworks

What to wear

with that

little black dress

Of night

 

Maybe some

shimmering drop diamonds

that cascade off the lobes like waterfalls

 

Maybe some

bracelets encrusted with

rubies, sapphires and emeralds

 

Maybe some

rings encircled in silver

or high-polished gold

 

Maybe a crown

a Tiffany tiara

like the one

Audrey wore

 

Hard to choose

but one

 

They all make

the dress

POP

TL

Single Rose

With her walker

She made it

Down the ramp

Around the potted plant

To the chair

Across from me

 

“I used to shop in here

All day …

Now I have to

Take a little rest”

 

I smiled and told

Her a lie,

“I understand”

 

She said

she was 85

 

She told me

It’s been three years

Since her husband died of a stroke

 

he was 91

 

She said she tries

To get out

And not sit at home all day

That there’s only

So much TV she can take

 

She said her and her younger sister

Used to shop all day long

And have the best of times

 

Her sister’s dead now

 

She talked about her grown kids

How proud she is of her law-enforcement-son

How much she misses her daughter …

The one who died of a stroke at 43

“We were on the phone, and she said,

‘Mama, my face feels funny – can’t feel it.’ ”

 

Later

She showed me a cross on a chain

That she bought before she sat down

Made out of Mother of Pearl

“It reminded me of my mother.

She loved Mother of Pearl.”

 

When we parted ways

I felt

I had aged

TL

Circle

Somewhere

There’s no

Green grass

Or turn

Leaf tree

 

Somewhere

Nobody cares

What happens

In the world

Outside their

Door

 

Somewhere

She’s taking

Off her clothes

For cash

 

Somewhere

Somebody got

Shot

For gold

 

Somewhere

A kid

Becomes an

Addict

 

Somewhere

A child

Is taken

And never

Returned

 

Somewhere

People are hungry

For food

Others for their

Very soul

 

Somewhere

A woman

Is weeping

On the ground

 

Somewhere

A man

Is so miserable

He shoots at strangers

Then himself

 

Somewhere

A teenage girl

Gives birth

To a baby she’ll

Never know

 

Somewhere

A man

Can’t find work

To feed his family

Or his pride

 

Somewhere

A child

Is crying

In a corner

 

Somewhere

People are stuck

In circumstances

Beyond their control

 

Somewhere

Could be

Anywhere

 

And anywhere

Could be

Right here

TL

TIGER

Crowd goes wild

For the win

Cheers go round

From town to town

He’s a winner

S-C-O-R-E-CAT-S-C-O-R-E

Hear him ROAR!

Trophies galore

Ticket, Ticket,

Here’s my Ticket

Front row center

Click, Click, Click

Got to get a shot

Got to get a scribble

Got to get a shake

First in line

For the sign

What a day

What a year

What a gift

Read it, Watch it, Tape it

Bought the gear

As if he’s here

Time goes by

Bigger, Better, BEST

Pledge forever

Tail that STAR

Watch how far

Outshines ‘em all

World renown

 

then

               he’s

                                     down

 

Look around

Where’d they go

That faithful flock

That loved him so

They’ve gone

And left him

On the line

 

how dare he

disappoint my boy

 

how dare he

upset my ladies

 

how dare he

disgrace The Game

that perfect game

let’s go home

and lick our wounds

and forget how GREAT he was …

 

how GREAT he still is

TL

Friends

there are people

out there

who think

they have friends

 

they really do

but haven’t a clue

 

a friend is not

a perfect present

that you unwrap at whim

feeling fuzzy and fake

 

don’t make that mistake

 

for friendship

is not a layered cake

that you cut into

and take and take

and expect to

crown it with a candle

and sing a jolly jingle

 

what a wasted wish

 

being real

is no party

 

 it’s a 3 a.m. call

from jail

 

it’s a cut wrist

or a single shot

 

it’s the “worst-case scenario”

played out

 

it’s a mess

like oil in the ocean

 

it’s an arrow apology

that fell short of the board

 

it’s a drunk fist

a verbal assault

 

it’s the deepest disappointment

the saddest song

 

it’s a collision of wills

that never faults the driver

 

it’s a coward

that hides until it’s “all clear”

 

it’s a field of flowers

following the wind

 

it’s everything wrong

with the world

 

it’s a broken bottle

you stepped on

 

it’s static

on a dead line

 

it’s Hell

when it hurts

 

but the worst

is not feeling

 

so, remember my friend

keep the cake

forget the present

don’t waste the wish

 

be willing to die a little inside

or you’re already dead

TL