why ants never venture out during hailstorms

an ant,
i believe his name was Milton,
stood atop his castle of sand
shouting his defiance
(as much as an ant can shout
having no lungs, tongue or vocal chords,
but none the less
they can get upset too and
are not afraid to say so,
thank you very much)
at the gods of foul weather.

well one moment Milton was all full of himself,
the next, his ant skull was crushed 
by a hailstone the size of a pea.
wasn't much left of his sand castle either.
but you can bet his protest had been duly noted.


4/26/1991

a rose

yesterday

i picked a rose that wasn't mine.

it wasn't the first time.

the rose was for

a love too far away.

i placed it then

on the place where now she lay.

Piper

footprints and shadows

the Others told us
our lives were memories,
footprints and shadows,
mostly illusion. 

what have we done?
they asked,
what deed or thing will outlast us?

we didn't know how to answer
so we left them in their caves
and wandered into the meadow

leaving only footprints and shadows,
memories,
to mark the way.


4/24/1991

the distance between us

in the daytime we would walk
ever searching
reaching out across the void

at night our dreams
were filled with travel
not to places
but to our moments together

until finally we found a place
where we were no longer aware
of the distance between us.


3/19/2011

contentment

a kiss was left
on blushing cheek
breath became shallow and quick

time stopped
as arms embraced
tears mingled with laughter
until nothing was left
but contentment


2/25/2011

tomorrow again

i want it to be tomorrow again,
the kind of tomorrow we had as children;
the kind we looked forward to,
like our birthday,
or Christmas.

i want there to be no sorrow again,
just the carefree times we had as children;
each day filled with hope and wonder.
each night filled with sweet dreams
and peace.

i want to see the flowers again,
i want to see them through the eyes of children.
but i must wait for tomorrow then;
for it to be tomorrow again.
today seams unusually old.


2/1/2018

floating

together we watched as time slipped by,
each moment a separate leaf 
caught in a river's current.

we understood that we were like the leaves;
souls floating through time and space.
and, caught up in a draft,
we may have touched once
or more.

but we remain as we always were,
two leaves in the stream,
grasping for our few moments of time.


4/20/1991

fading

memories
and smiles fade
in evening's light

as daytime's warmth
slips away
in the dark of night

whispered promises
shadows
fall from sight


4/16/1991

the leaves within my heart

i answered the wind

(calling me softly)

with a sigh of my own:

i have no more tears to give to the dead.

yet i linger still, unable to turn away.

the leaves within my heart are burning,

their smoke stings my eyes,

forming a cloud that blocks the sun.

the wind stirs again

brushing my cheek gently,

like you would do.

there were tears left after all.

i freely let them fall.

6/23/1991

quality of dreams

dreams have a quality
mysterious yet familiar,
like the scent of a perfume rarely worn.
does time move in dreams?

i study the sound of your breath
as you sleep beside me.
the gentle rise and fall of your breasts
reassures me that i am here

dreaming of warm embraces;
abstract images that rock my world
gently, gently.


      4/22/2011

becoming one

frozen

thought and motion become one
wind whips through the trees,
stings my face,
i turn away

frozen

time and energy become one
drifting snow obscures the land,
blots out the sun,
i turn away

frozen

life and death become one
the voice whispers hoarsely,
beckoning, cajoling,
i turn away

frozen.


4/13/1991

offers

i could not give you what i wanted,
nor from you receive what you would share.
my vision is not yours-
while i looked forward, 
you were farsighted and saw beyond my dreams
(even as i saw through yours.)

there is no snow in the woods today
but the naked trees still stand
and i among them, wondering,
what could i offer?
what would you receive?


4/10/1991