last day (word of the day - walleyed)

invisible scar
of an arrogant remark
walleyed and alone
her flimsy fingers fidget
until the paper is torn

coffee spills erase
the letter that trembles out
delicate words she
no longer cares to discuss
she rewrites and laminates

the papers are served
the worn waitress resigns her
apron for a cape

where to go from here

at the edge a woman
sustains her grip with two ski poles
dipped down firmly into snow-covered ground

quietly above her
a city of clouds is forged
for two dollars, a man paints  a portrait
of a wiggly child
a vague body in a white dress
waltzes, gown twirls

all of it rises as she
faces down, holds herself back -
knows that she is one step away

her frozen stance doesn't falter
she gazes upwards and lets
herself be surrounded with the
towers and mountains above
the city walls
a delicate ridge of air floats
into a field of cotton that becomes
a blanket of snow that shields
the once blue sky

she stretches up to see a castle, or a
hospital, an tower unknown,
a shape slurred by smog
and then more shapes

wild animals gather around her
her feet hold steady

she has arrived

for you I bloom

skipping through a lily field
with the sword that I wield

i will
besiege the ill world
in color, in kindness

divineness
its colors drip and fall,
flower petals cover us all
scarlet leaves in the fall
winter's witch hazel
spring's yellow trillium
summer's wealth - the lily, lilac,
pink zinnia, and
the fresh bloom
of my favorite daisy
yellow, surrounded by
a warm white hug

I move cautiously away from pain
set my sword down
hope that you can see
the aster I placed
next to the place you rest

I will be here when
the snowdrops bloom

runaway robin

robin in her nest
restless - lays eggs - develops
a crush on a bird
blue with sage wings, far away
her red feathers freeze in flight

working (preliminary) postulate

I believe my child is smarter
than I ever was-
that the his wiggle
is the embodiment
of grace.


I believe:

in electric hand holding on the beach
as our feet drift together
in the shallow ocean water
and a distant rainbow fades
but never, ever disappears

it is easy to be misunderstood.
I will persist through the fog
our love will  last forever
if we have the patience
to wait for the sun to rise.

in writing each day
for the love of words
and the need to be heard,
the hope that I've kept
one reader at her
laptop crumbling cookies
into her keyboard as her
eyes succumb to the sound
of her voice reading my poem.


I believe that nothing dies -
the last breath of
a dying person
is gently drawn in
by the infinite universe,
his soul reborn

I believe that when
my essence is released
you will hold my hand
and follow my spirit
to its new place

I believe in forever and never
even though I know better.

orchid hair

the flower's breath's been
captured by the warm, slow breeze
flowing through your curls

I only believe in stories that start with stars (or word of the day - Polaris)

The stars uncountable as I begin
to connect the dots
numbers disappear through my mind

Spots of light now rule my mind
as their patterns chase each other
through infinite space

I only believe in the fairy tale
that is known to start because
of the true story of a constellation

The stars are playing tag
and I am it -
a first kiss with a boy named Charles
under the moonlit sky

More kisses on the yellow bus - a pledge of love
to last forever - no one else exists

The North Star knows it is not  a color or a pattern to be traced,
it has no story of its own, but it can tell all of our stories
a vivid keeper of the human battlefield, watcher of people at play

She laughs at us - our resolutions
she only knows resolve
she shines brighter than
my sparkle dress

I did not make one resolution this year
The North Star speaks to me -
She believes in me

The stars line up in undeniable patterns,
scientifically mapped, studied, changed

The sky governs life below it
I am its daughter and also yours

Charles and I did not last forever
but our first kiss remains.