Outside There is the Sun

But here I sit coldly
It is the cold of the uncertain plotting of life
perhaps more so of the unfurling of life
the unsteady gait of final chapters

As if on a distant hillside
The old ones of my life have aligned themselves
Still skirting death and yet
They hold hands and flirt with the darkness on the other side

Inviting the grim mask of those tomorrows to step aside
I hurled myself at the jungle
clearing cutting tossing aside armloads of debris
Cutting a new path a clearing an exposing of living trees

Until my arms burned
The birds assured me there was no lament
no helicopters say the volcano is quiet
It will not last but there will be laughter and tears

Everyone is trying to name the answers
If you look in the back of the book
You will see
No one knows what they are.

Things that matter

These things matter
a floor of much walked on wood
or stones into which dirt sinks like water

the gentle touch of a big dog
fur damp from rain outside
lightning forcing stark contrast

the effect of very dried fruit slices
or paper like bark

I have always liked light on water
ripples like time
or laughter

slivers of joy
lights of mirth

Mom's Desiderata

Mom's Desiderata

Go placidly amongst the family for it is the holidays

and your presence although much desired changes up the routine

No one's memory is without flaws 

thus there is always the possibility of absurd error on anyone's part

it is a waste of precious time to sort through past shoddy ideas

know that the dramas of the past exist only in the mind

If you find your tongue is sharp make amends on the spot

there is no argument to be won or lost 

only this time to be cherished

or added to the heap of wishes that never came true

for the days in front of us happen as they will

not according to plan a or plan b

Let us rejoice in the smallest of pleasures

for those are the joys of the moment and are swiftly gone

At the same time, know that each moment you savor may not

be the same moment those around you experience

For no one's eyes are following yours 

The most important gifts you bring cannot be tied in ribbons

Let the ways you touch be joyfully sincere 

If sadness comes upon you look inside your self 

 . . . rather than out at others . . .

       for its source 

and know you are surrounded by love no matter what

Above all else express gratitude

and think on this:

      the gifts of the season can make things complicated 

      even when well intended

know that you are accepted and appreciated in your fullness

welcomed and cherished

now and always

take it placidly, dears . . .  

You Would Not Think

Life has riddles riding its hours like surfboards
while we search for meaning in famous words

We bring home puppies to pee on the carpet
dogs to remind us we are always alive
they find us more lovable than anyone ever was before
Our lives belong then to those dogs
Until time rips them away from us as it does all things
And our hearts are torn out
How can one go on then?  But we do
Today I thought for a moment
My old dog was just behind me
Something in the sound of his breath
The way he whispered after me

And how much we want babies
Flesh from our flesh blood from our blood
Carrying our hearts on the brink of their winsome laughter
We watch them for signs of anything
Prayers on the waning moon & marches of daffodils
It becomes all for them
And they grow into their personhood
to sneer at us who loved every whorl on their fingertips
we breathe as if it was the last day ever and ask
what impulse made us do the thing that brought them
to that pain and blindness
just then another day carries out a new laughter
we can see the moon in their smiles
know there is all love in this life
a brilliant serpent of joy wraps this present

what song does the wind sing
when in the trees you hear the ocean
the whispers of your mother
your lover's sigh in the moonlight
that yellow dog settling down in the darkness of your room
separated from the stars
only because it might rain

tattooed hearts

We you and I we both used to know her
She had yellow caution tape across her heart
there were signs everywhere about her
that No Trespassing sign was vivid on her lips
the gated hips a deterrent to all but rats

It came as such a surprise
when someone turned up on her sofa
drinkin’ her wine and she there
right in the kitchen
bakin’ him pies all the signs down

Who would have thought anyone could have
gotten through Sleeping Beauty’s briar patch
we all said and tooted our horns
to applaud the security breach
never pausing to think out loud

Until collapsed on the brink of the pit
of love gone totally gone she lay
on the last of the coffee ground
lilacs shredded across her open path
We saw he had stolen her heart
He had ridden away with all her goodies

And it became clear to us you and me
that only a thoroughly rotten scoundrel
could have broken in to her emotional fortress
and that is when we you and I
threw all the locks to our hearts in the rushing river
every ray of loving sunshine now comes in upon us
Thieves of love and happiness are still out there
Having lost their way in their own darkness

Song of the day

Ignore the days that pass
my love
hold me hard
in these shadows
where no one intrudes

fold up these words
keep them next to your heart
to know me when the snows fall
when these hands no longer move

If there were phrases
woven through with passion
that could hold this love
in their prison in their shackles

believe me
I would not use them
Let us lay down in this golden sunlight
our hearts beating with the earth

we will make no other plans
neither intrude into tomorrow
come and drink up this day
make it your blood this music
this rhythm the heartbreath of all time

Note for the carrier pigeon

Are you there watching from that other side
If you are I hope you saw
Mauka the girl dog shake sand off her treat before eating it
emerging flowers on your purple and golden orchid
box of books for the women’s shelter
all titles of hope and compassion

I hope you read all this like your own handwriting
in emerald green ink like no other’s
I hope you know it means there is intentionality
there is peace and intelligence aflow
in the world as you left it

I hope you know
you are with me often and always
in this rearrangement of familiar smiles in this garden
of hope and dreams