Don’t mean to complain
but the days are always hot
Decomposition
poem
Mirror
Hey there, preening girl!
“beauty” is destined to flee
“Real You” will remain
About this poem: as I age and raise teenage daughters, I realize the stage where I was distracted by the issue of physical appearance played a “hyped up” role in identity. All that time and energy directed toward something I was really not in control of could have been invested in cello playing, writing or reading a good book.
I’m also keenly aware that I still care more than I would like to – I exercise now with the goal of building and keeping muscle/strength but aesthetics still has some play in my intentions.
Our culture idolizes the young, which is silly because being young is fleeting and not based on wisdom or experience. It’s just dumb luck.
Exuberance is Everywhere
“Being present means living without control and always having your needs met.”
Byron Katie, On Work and Money
Control = illusion
true needs are few, wants are not
all I need, I have
Teacher’s Haiku
Haiku for the Humdrum
the well is bone dry
waiting and yearning won’t help
time to drink some tea
Afflicted
your restless thoughts
are trembling dis-eases
a burden you strapped to your back
examine the contents
and
let
them
go
Arizona Summer
Illuminate the room and observe the scene
shake your shoes out before you put them on
for his creepy form signals a torturous mien
he’s a venomous stinger, the scorpion
Quiet Hero
She shuffles to the register
her head, cocked slightly, shakes
The customer, in his sports gear, looks on
irritated, he tries to rush her with his eyes
But she’s unmoved – stiff, slow and careful
her quivering hand cradles his produce
she glides it over the scanner gracefully
he searches the ceiling for . . . . . . . . . . . . . mercy?
He jams his card in the chip reader
the receipt trembles in mid air
he grabs it from her, forcefully smirks
and mutters as he walks away
She doesn’t see this
because she’s smiling and nodding
at the next customer
her rebellious body complies unsteadily
for now
Hedgehog
She goes about her business
and will tighten into a ball if you harass her
Her spines fall out under extreme stress
but she’s resilient (!) – they grow back
she’s vocal, nocturnal,
and has a natural immunity against snake venom
(through years of evolution?)
omniverous and vociferous
the badger can’t stay away
{Reading up on the hedgehog, it reminded me of the #metoo movement}
Legacy
Sitting with my daughter “Bunny” by the pool
we talk about Kate Spade’s suicide and sadness we’ve never known
Bunny’s hair is fanned all over the pool deck, her clear eyes to the sky
Spade wrote a letter to her 13-year-old daughter
telling her it wasn’t her fault
my words ride the waves of the pool and get sucked into the filter
Looking at Bunny, the note seems an especially cruel gesture
In the distance, we can hear a woodpecker on aluminum siding
Kismet 