I’ve been waiting for anger to subside
or at least squidgy a little to the left
or, if not that, slide a bit lower
or melt, maybe, from my furrowed brow and clenched jaw
or warm the nippy fluids buffering my heart by just half a degree
or soften just the tiniest bit the hardened knot in my belly
or shush just a millisecond from the mind chatter with that certain tone –
the one used by teens tragically misunderstood by supportive liberal suburban parents –
to make way for the poem to emerge.
Posted in Anger, Poetry, Protest, Women, Writing | 1 Comment »
-Jan 6, 2018
Today is the 19th of Tevet
the moon wanes gibbous
the indolent sun rouses a mere 8 hours and 37 minutes.
It is the dead of winter
which could be a metaphor
except it is winter and you are still dead, Dad,
no bud or blossom gathering nourishment
to bloom forth in riotous spring.
Posted in Death/Loss/Grief, Fathers, Prayer | Leave a Comment »
Birdsong
competes with the fluorescents’ buzz
the cold concrete risers of the underground parking lot
emitting tweets and chirps
the call and response
of barn swallows
safe from predators and the Pacific arctic air
chilling all the inhabitants of this usually moderate climate
bipeds scurrying despite featherlite down plumage.
Posted in Birds, Emotions/Inner World, New Year's | 1 Comment »
Twin Falls, Snoqualmie River, WA
alongside the Snoqualmie River’s South Fork
the tall and lumbering Taiwanese student
towering over the thin and lanky American teen
the energetic dog pulling the 50-something suitor up the trail
and me
the other 50-something
tracking literary allusions
stopping for expansive breaths
murmuring metta blessings
closing my eyes to receive autumn’s first sunlight
watching a solitary maple leaf
spiral a lazy descent
down the 186 foot drop
the white crashing roar receding to backdrop
the protagonist shifting from the intense energy of the falls
to the delicate wisp of yellow
and the unseen wind currents
Death’s delight in last moments
where freedom and lightness
make all else seem like backstory.
Posted in Death/Loss/Grief, Mortality, Photos, Waterfall | Leave a Comment »
I married the man
from an unbroken line
of cattle rustlers and outlaws
misogynists and God-fearers
hard drinkers and card players
good-ole boys and long-suffering wives
descendants of those with skin white enough
to hold slaves
own vast farmland
distill spirits to make it through
North Dakota winters
and high plains droughts.
Continue Reading »
Posted in Bible Story, Legends and Mythology, Poetry, Relationships, Writing | Leave a Comment »