Caring for Strays

stray cats on the back porch found
one yellow - one white
one male - one female, respectively
one stayed - one vanished
a fixture yellow has become,
inside cats number three
all are male you see...
only one has venture outside
to play with the stranger.
malnourished was the yellow cat
found to be - fed regularly he was
now a fat cat we tend to see
waiting each morning on the deck
for our consistent arrival...
a stray cat he once was to us,
now a member of the family,
only somewhat you see as we have
three other cats to feed.
content with his surrounding,
we call him little boy, finding out
recently he goes by kitty kitty.
our stray yellow cat has survived
winter, spring, and summer,
providing joy and comfort when
inside and around our lives...
we felt sorry for the strays that no
longer seem to roam the grounds.

August 23, 2025

Ode to Back Porches

silence in the morning breaks
words offer no consolation
breeze ripples intertwine with
the reality of isolation...
foraging birds seeing nothing
offer nothing to change the
outcomes we so deserve,
squirrels tease the cats
who tease each other and
chase falling leaves that
disappear forever on the
darkened grassy ground...
sight hinders the vision of
hearing as sounds filter
through bushes and trees
like altar boys who try to 
consume leftover wine 
before being seen by the
elderly visiting priest...
back porches live in rural
America like the buried
memories of dead soldiers.

August 21, 2025

We Were Just Wondering

wondering
about corrupt politicians
still in office,

wondering
about children in slums
that are dying,

wondering
about all the wealthy who
have avoided taxes,

wondering
about the young soldiers
dying in foreign lands,

wondering 

about the God that allows
all this to happen,

wondering
about the students when
they learn nothing,

wondering
about all our children
overdosing on drugs,

wondering
about all the illegal immigrants
who are given sanctuary,

wondering
if the news we read is true
accurate and balanced,

wondering 
why we only wonder instead
of changing what's wrong.

August 21, 2025

Freedom's Reminders

mellow morning memories mix naturally

with the day's unfolding currents leaving

us wanting more... receiving less...  and

hoping for a change in venue from the

routines that have guided us so far,

we surround the table of doubt with our

thoughts before each meal, knowing not

why we were chosen to live or die when

others are given different paths to follow,

narrow minded individual soaked in the

wet clothes of past failures knock on our

door looking for donations to change the

course of our destiny and false hopes.

pride lays on the doorstep of wisdom

if and when we decide to give ours up.

August 20, 2025

Just Another Old Man

white haired and bearded an old man rests
a rocking chair he's owned for years
holds his fragile body, creaking as it moves,
a wooden porch made from reused lumber
is the foundation of this adventure,
for years he has been rocking there
neglected by his neighbors when passing
waves in their direction anyway,
he is a fool they say - the only one in town
one that deserves no attention they say
one that should not be around...
behind his back they make fun of him,
tossing stones and rocks to torment,
they rejoiced the day he died
praising the ambulance that took him away
laughed and mocked when no one attended
the funeral the city had to provide...
a young reported was ordered to write the story
of the old rocking man that had no friends,
upset she was given the assignment
researched his life disrespectfully,
her story pulled no punches
determined to write the truth once and for all
was amazed to discover the old man
had been someone to remember
since he held the medal of honor received
for heroism in Vietnam - saving lives of children
who had belittled the Americans who
had arrived uninvited to set them all free,
his family had left him because of all the lies
mainstream media printed about him,
his neighbors rejected him not knowing who he was
so he sat there in his rocking chair everyday
in an act of final defiance - letting everyone know
he was still proud to be an American
despite what everyone else thought of him.

August 19, 2025

Children Abandoned

children not their parent know

left on streets like animals

abandoned long ago

with their responsibilities.

grown and ignored

turn to violence they do

seeking attention from others

love they never had...

the streets they walk alone

sometimes together

or in groups...  terrorizing

those in their way.

fancy themselves as gangsters

mayhem is their play.

long ago it could have changed

foster parents and siblings

were it not for those who

only gamed the system

leaving no room for change.

August 19, 2025

Moments and Memories

ageless moments and memories

dangle in the mind's atmosphere

like ornaments hanging from a tree,

misery loves company they say

but only on the weekends...

doubt suppresses guilt when

questions aren't answered

and life begins a middle age

is just a foolish rumor...

single parents dine on facebook

hoping for a new experience,

showing off body parts as if

skin is the main attraction once

the pills have been swallowed.

hapless hobos walk the tracks

looking for their next meal,

avoiding family responsibilities

by giving away their fortunes;

photos from the earlier days

turn yellow in back pockets

crinkle in wallets - seldom

looked at anyway - reminding

reminding us of times when

was just a finger click away.

August18, 2025

Closing Doors

friends float freely in
mental ponds filled
with memories soon
to be forgotten when
loyalties linger
undisturbed after
decades of isolation;
cages gilded with
sad stories sit on the
doorstep of fantasy,
optimism halts its
production, borders
skate home after the
storm of showers,
falling perilously
close to the end of
time here on earth;
youth hold onto its
self after nightmares
rearrange thoughts,
nailed down to the
floors after falling off
hanger of hope, left
over from yesterday's
rally in the square,
and all the uninvited 
guests sold their causes
to nonprofit charities.

August 17, 2025

Staying Neutral

hollow point moments
through and through
a storms pre-calmness
fancy interlude...
suspects, warrants
search conducted
by the book provided
target marching
in unison parading,
discounted colors flying
shirts waving
hats flying towards
the victims,
shot fired repeatedly,
downward movements
colliding concealments
all too often seen...
witch hunts preclude
the final decision
made with retrospective
vision and interpretation,
overdue yesterday
were the crowds assembled
victory was pronounced
dead at the gravesite.

August 17, 2025

Strings of Time

hours pass by unnoticed
days too,
years are fleeting
not as much 
as decades though,
some days,
times seems to stand still
move in slow motion,
forever and a day
does it pass by,
ever so nimbly...
some days,
it flows,
rain without end,
boundless
energy free
and then some,
a hurricane
tornado,
or mud slide
unpredictable in
how it goes...
some days,
it returns to normal
comparing and contrasting
what has been,
what is and what
most assuredly will be.

August 16, 2025