Hunters Hunted

down from their ivory towers they came

in twos and threes and sometimes singles,

surveying what was done and why as if

wrong moves had been made for decades;

by the numbers they managed, as large

numbers told them what to do and when,

paying the odds but without wheels spinning

and no bets were ever taken or paid out;

rearranging work and how it played out,

revising tasks and procedures, all because

it no longer made sense to do it otherwise,

at least according to their facts and figures;

there was no need for the middle man as

the rank and file could be trained to do what

they had only pretended to do each day,

justifying their jobs by pushing paper...

and when the microscope was placed on

the activity and found to be redundant, it 

was them who blamed others for their

denials and shortcomings...  it was not 

sad to see them go, but oh so necessary.

May 24, 2023

Wild Animals

endangered we have become

wild animal roaming free,

in and out of places and spaces

from one city to the next,

careful to stay in cheap rooms

on the back streets to avoid

the notoriety of detection,

eating our meals out of cans

of trash on the alleyways of

some restaurants in which we

used to dine with friends but

no more as most of them have

died due to surrender failures

imposed by not paying taxes,

we have been invited to serve,

refusing the invitation just as

we refused to serve and fight

someone else's wars...  and now

hunted we have become like a

pack of wild animals roaming.

May 24, 2023

Downsizing

curtains fall down in front of windows

hiding the view from outside,

shoes on their sides lay, waiting for 

their user to again appear,

unused boxes search for their contents

long since removed and put away,

a table that held many meals prior

given away to charity,

a kitchen open to the living rooms

awaits its new owners, not knowing

what to expect or how they will

be used in the coming years,

rooms repainted and items removed,

packed and repacked as if trying

to hide away all the emptiness,

a house...  a home...  a meeting place...

it was all three of these and more,

and then the time came to give it all

away, move into more accommodating.

May 23, 2023

Awakening

a slight fog surrounds my mind

thoughts are sluggish and vague

tears slide down the walls, looking

for a place to fall into...  words

sit on the stairs unformed and

ill-conceived wishing they had

been still born...  a slight fog 

covers the phrase that has yet

to be written, pausing once in

a while to pick up strange words

like passengers for a bus...  there

are expressions of loneliness

waiting at the corner of then and

now wishing for substitutes but

offer no suggestions...  a strange

fog lingers in the subconscious,

not much different than bankrupt

souls looking for a handout and

isolation has once again arrived.

May 23, 2023

Patchwork

a door swings open and I am left

with a whiff of a faint memory,

not quite fully developed and

wonder if it is from my past or

from another's with whom I may

have interacted way back when...

I have no recollection of the event

or of any event similar to the one

about which I am thinking...  no

idea if it is really mine or another's

or even borrowed without being

returned once it had been used...

it is strange not to recall at all or

is it just a legal term that keeps 

me from being held liable?  I am

not one to wonder but I am one

to speculate and if I were a betting

man, and I am not, I would bet

on the latter not the former...

and now...  it is finally time to

patch the hole in my head that

the randomness of ideas to flew

before they are captured again, 

the bondsman being a friend.

May 20, 2023

Accountability

a petrified thought sits on the bottom

of my mental well from which new

thoughts...  more vibrant thoughts

are retrieved daily...  it has been there

for a long time gathering emotional

dust from alienation and neglect...

it is a verse or a line or perhaps even

a sentence that was never used and

never intended to be used hence the

placement of the discovery...  its days

were numbered before they started

since it was discarded without remorse

nor without remembrance as all things

lost are eventually found, as the mental

auditor must account for everything

when the time comes for accountability.

May 20, 2023

Exploring the End

let us be joyful for those who

would be with us but cannot,

let us be mindful of those who

lament over our pleasures and

believe it was they who taught

us how to live a romantic life,

let us be forever gracious to

those who we knew along the

way but who couldn't pull it

all together as we have done,

let us be thankful to all the

good fortune we have had

the opportunity to experience

since life is full of hardships,

let us remember our parents

as it is they who set the stage

for the experiment to unfold,

let us reward our children who

without our personalities would

have floundered like fish in the

oceans of our combined dreams.

May 19, 2023

An Antique Desk

it was given to me by my father,
whose father gave it to him
whose father gave it to him.
whose father built it from scratch;
to say its antique is an understatement
to say its just handmade is as well...
it was being saved for my daughter
who way back when was an avid
collector of antiques...  or so she said,
and it was kept for her just in case;
times change and we have not talked
or had any kind of communications
in almost a decade...  so...  to a good
cause it was given...  Habitat's Humanity
owns it now and has been told the
story to be shared with new owners
if they really care about its history.

May 19, 2023

Inside A Baobab Tree

we are with no one, and no one is with us,

we are alone with our own thoughts and

memories... friendless and forsaken by

our own design, not your choice...  we 

see the emptiness of love and all of its

surrogates...  caring and feelings that are

as hollow as a baobab tree, intentional

and not through some misfortune...  we

choose to be alone, living in solitude

with the animals of nature that don't talk

back or seek revenge when angered...

we live for no one and no one lives for us,

we are not greedy nor are we motivated

by that desire as we tend to cling to only

that which we need to survive as life

around us survives with us...  it is a 

mutual existence and survival and the

allows us to see what we need to see...

stars guide us in the night when all our

activities cease to be - we are lying on 

our backs comforted by their presence.

May 16, 2023

From Afar

age follows us around all our lives

born young and die old, wondering

what is yet to be inside the unknown,

life flows like the wind in silent gusts

coming out of nowhere...  blowing us

from one side of awareness to the side

about which we know nothing...  we

eliminate our fears when sleeping 

yet they are restored when awake...

understanding only that which we

need to understand for the next day,

tending to the gardens of those who

came before not as ancestors but as

travelers from another world...  from

a different time, letting us know we

are pawns in a universe of species

not so tolerant of our ignorance's.

May 16, 2023

Forgetfulness

sheer curtains billow outward as the silent

wind blows into the house, a glass door opens

letting in just the right amount of light...  a

bug on the wall, from another universe, is

mesmerized by its texture, sliding down in

a diagonal path towards the bottle's opening.

casually it falls inside and wonders what 

has just happened, failing to understand the

depth of its new predicament...   light adorns

the inner world of the room in which it has

found itself, leaving no room for doubt that

there is no escape until darkness... shadows

on the floor illustrate the complexity of the

situation, knowing that the day is about to

make it final exit into the western sunset.

the myth of forgetfulness surrounds the

house and its room, casting doubt on its

existence as it slowly fades from sight...

we look at each other seductively and

wonder why we overlooked its plight.

May 15, 2023

Crime of Purpose (or lack thereof)

 

along the edge of life I walk

taking good with bad and

positives with negatives...

seeing the light not the dark,

dealing with what I can change

accepting what I cannot...

believing each day above ground

is a blessing given to me by

circumstance and predestination;

criminal trespassing fo the mind

is not the issue it's made out to be

as life extends beyond the limits

and boundaries of reality...  we

pretend to know what we don't,

forecasting speculations that

are unproven and never will be,

we spend money like drunken

sailors on shore leave, hoping

that all debts are justified in 

the end through death and it's

notorious cancellations...  a

mirror image of ignorance is

what we have become, not

realizing that greed is what

molded us forever stupid...

inside our minds we spit on

the neighbors for building too

close to our homes while at

the same time, borrow every-

thing we can from their garage.

May 9, 2023

Predestination

life bends, twists, and turns as we

navigate the highways, streets, and

back roads of our brief existence;

it moves up and down, sideways,

back and forth to the point we are

dizzy and disoriented with is constant

changing directions, unpredictabilities,

and randomness -  we feel helpless

and lost believing that not even a 

compass could take us where we

perceive we need to go...   if we

hesitate an iota, life fills in the 

blanks - we are taken but not

where we think we want to go

but where we were planned to go,

taking into account median feelings.

May 6, 2023

Swamp Gas

morning flirts with dusk as it creeps

above the horizon, washing its hands

in the noonday sun befroe resting

itself in an afternnon rocker on the

sundown porch of the day's end...

the evening breathes in life to a tired

generation that has lived its life in

the shadows of the previous one...

sleepless and pathetic they roam the

streets like night vultures looking

for their mistresses who feld years

ago due to lack of ambition...  rats

scurry across the faces of the streets,

looking for late arrivals who left

without any personal belongings,

hoping to be invited to a late meal...

darkness surrounds itself and the

moon hide in between its layers...

darkeness descend decadently as it

lures innocence into its early morning

hours before the sun has awakened.

May 6, 2023

NOW

morning brings with it the rain

early...  before the sun has showered

when time sits on the back porch

counting its blessings...  we see

the past in memories, the future

with anticipation but the present,

           that time of now

is ever present in all we do as it

follows us around throughout the day;

it never sleeps, never hesitates and

never questions what it must do...

it is always there, unlike the past

or the future -  always a brief second

away on either side of now, never

questioning their endless positionings;

we see the day for what it is, was, or

will be as now tries to be there for us

with an endless amount of capacity.

May 5, 2023

Wind Trespasses

a wind ever so constant blows

tress bend and break while some

stand tall and resist...  they are

the ones the wind seeks but yet

to know they are its targets...

a future rhyme is written and

floats on the wind to its reader,

who just learned to read last

spring and is now the proud

owner of books-a-milliion and

a candy store...  a windy evening

pushes away the blue skies and

brings with it in a tag-along 

fashion style storm clouds of

dark blues, greys, and blacks,

not to be confused with any

species of the same nature who

might use the winds for properity;

we embark on a windy night, the

trek that all wish to take sooner

or later to the devine land of holies

in the mountains to the east to

partake in the knowledge gathering

of wisdom lying due south of the

infamous folklore dogwood trees.

May 5, 2023

WindowVerse

drop down windows offer instructions

close when not in use and sometimes

each line has side windows with more

instructions and more side windows

until one's frontal views are occupied;

it is the same with galaxies and solar

systems and planets and regions and

countries, provinces, and cities...

when each city is more closely viewed

one can see objects that are broken-down

into molecules, atoms, and particals...

whereupon particles are comprised of

subatomic particles and they are made

up of smaller particles and even smaller

particles until the smallest are vibrating

string of pure energy, randomly moving;

their movement are so misunderstood 

that some believe multiple dimensions

evolve from the various windows that

they may or may not create...  it is a

fantasy time of thought based entirely

upon imagination and creativity and

a little logic that revolves around 

mathematical complexities that may

or maynot satisfy the mental equation;

still, these windowverses open up all

around us creating more dimensions

that we can speculate in real time...

as time is the only constatnt moving

just as fast as light...  and now is a 

tad less than the time to blimk an eye.

May 5, 2023

Rewards

greed, power, and control

form the foundations of out

societies, but among these

three, wealth is the most

damaging...  wealth is the

force that destroys, replaces

and rebuilds in an effort to

generate more wealth...

when all the wealth has

been divided and there is

none left to share, who is it

that society turns to - those

who have been impoverished;

collectively, these weakened

creatures are the backbone of

the well to do, as they buy the

goods and services produced

and while one is of no concern

a million change the odds...

they are the ones who provides

the skills, provides the labor...

they are the ones who borrow

money just to survive and they

are the ones who ask nothing

in return except a quiet life.

May 2, 2023

Windy Wind

wind blows through cracks in the mind

and I find myself with chills racing

throughout my body on their way to

some kind of victory dance...  my latent

feelings are of no concern, yet I wrap

myself in warmer clothes just in case;

light in my mind, escapes through these

same cracks, illuminating my nightly

journeys into the realm of dreams...

this is where the wind cannot follow

but neither can the cold soul that is

on the verge of freezing...  wondering

when my useless sorjourns will end;

wind bends the light and the light bends

gravitry and gravity holds me in place

while I ponder my situation...  fools

seek not the fool in me - I am left to

my own devices, none of which were

brought with me - at a loss of words, I am

but fail to see the humor that the windy

wind obviously thought it brought to me.

May 1, 2023

Being There

rings around the light I see

a distored vision,

words on the page blur unless

my eyes are squinted...

glasses once upon a time worn

but no more says the master,

who, inside my head, control

all my thoughts and actions;

reflections on the window glass

seem crystal clear to me,

an illusion, I've been told as

none were there to begin with...

I am at a loss with what to say

as no words have been given to me,

yet, everyone is expecting an

answer from me as that's what I do;

eyes split the difference with 

what they see or don't see and I am

comfortable with those conclusions,

still, there must be more to life

that just seeing what's to see and if

this is the way it is...  then I am

not totally sure I want to be here.

May 1, 2023

Guardians

out into the darkness we gaze

stars after stars we see

constellations we find once

they have been point out to us;

out into the light we gaze

clouds after clouds we see

some are round while there

ae others that are stringy;

out into our mind we search

thoughts after thoughts confronted

the stakes of knowledge are clear

leaving home with none of it;

out into life itself we venture

obstacle by obstacle we encounter

some are easy while others hard

yet we venture forward nonetheless;

out into death we succumb

allowing our last breath to pass

and with our eyes we notice not

that you have always been with us.

May 1, 2023

Just Darkened

three dimensional thoughts float

with the clouds across the mind's

imagination...  silhouettes of people

not knowing what they want and 

all wanting what they know... a 

nursery rhyme for the soul that

needs no explanation save the one

that is offered without request...

three dimensional logic scans the

skies for discrepancies, only to

find the ones no one else wants...

rain falls where it is not intended

creating rivers of doubt on which

sailors have placed their bets,

using money not yet received...

colored marks and symbols adorn

the bodies of the lost and forsaken

as they cross the desert of desire

with clothes borrowed from friends.

April 30, 2023

Our Old Home

twenty-two years, in this house we lived

bought it one year after it was built,

not too pleased with the builders as he

seemed to be marginal at best...  first 

house where this was a problem but

a lesson learned we did have... and,

now is the time for us to leave here

once we have spent more than half

of its cost on improvements...  a

backyard pool surrounded by a deck,

on which is built a gazebo and a

jacuzzi sits like a tombstone...  an

acre lot provides us with lots of

grass, takes plenty of time to mow

but looks really good when green;

two sets of stairs connects the two

levels that old age now presents

to us as a burden, making it seem

rather ridiculuous to drive from

one level to the other...  although,

I suppose that what we could do...

renovations inside were made in

the kitchen and bathroom where

the former is all open to view...

hardwood blaords run horizontal

throughout the entire upper level

that cats enjoy sliding upon from

time to time when feeling frisky;

May 9, 2023

The Lunatic

mental images linger

floating uniformly

behind the eyes as if

seeking asylum from

the mind whose failure

to recognize depression

is the sole reason my

thoughts are still alive;

jibbering away...  a lunatic

on the run, favored not to

place or show...  reminding

us all that time spent is

time served and time served

is not always blessed by

those who put us there...

wind felled trees laugh at

their captors, knowing the

secrets to blow them away;

miles of the sky I have been

through on my travels and

no where am I invited to stay

like I am here...  wondering

if its good fortune or just a

working man's form of escape.

April 30, 2023

Much Too Early

an autumn breeze squeezes through

spring windows...  air units stilled...

fans silent, their chains dangling

down in plain sight...  an inside job

forces us outside into the cool warmth

of the sun...  trees bend in appreciation

for the path of the wind whose silence

is destined to repeat itself...  uneaten

toast sits on the plate with jam, waiting

for the child's hunger to return, when

its reality is more wasted food...  a

momentary glimpse in southern life

from a northern perspective is not

the best possible image to convey

but one that is accurate...   spring

leaked into the environment much

too early this year...  binding us in

harmony with last year's forecast.

April 30, 2023

Out From The Sky

rain falls from the sky

down to the ground and

into my drink - I watch

it fill the glass, diluting

the alcohol inside...

my stomach rumbles

like thunder due to the

emptiness it feels - there

is a good reason as I have

not eaten in hours...

our pond overflows with

kindness when visitors are

allowed to fish its banks,

even though no licenses...

a dusky dawn turn silent

when the evenng robs it

of its virginity and I watch

as if I am some dirty old

man getting his kicks...

mute points fall ot of my

ears along with the drops

that were put inside to

open up its possibilities,

falling short of expectations;

and, I see myself more than

just clearly but as others

see me when disappointed.

April 29, 2023

Fortune Favors Fools

an evening pale blue sky covers

my vision, a few clouds as well

and more trees then the eyes can

realisitically imagine...  an infusion

of colors, ripe as fruit stand in

between me and my judgement;

ferns on the porch rails hang

hummingbird feeders empty

due to the cracked concrete steps

in front of them...  restless souls

walk in the shoes of the living,

spirits ride bareback on currents

of wind Satan sent to bring home

the trophy...  silent footsteps make

indentations on the wet ground,

where seeds are freshly sown...

time dwells out in the open for

all to see as they rapidly age

from one day to the day, afraid

to show their old faces for fear

of being bullied...  we rhyme the

reason for the fire when there is

nothing to cook on the fireplace;

haunting images that stand on the

backs of all those less fortunate.

April 29, 2023

Sky Currents

across the skies of one's imagination

flies the free spirits of freedom, likely

candidates for early graves whose out-

spoken natures has flown them on the

uneven currents, currently traveling

across the horizons of innocence...

children of lesser thoughts beg their

elders for forgiveness when ther ideas

conflict with natuarl forces and the

blackbird peck on the windows,

looking for headless riders whose

only task is appearing on the eve's

of halloween...  we are not forgotten.

just mistreated with misguided wisdom

that fills the souls with summer rain...

a time before time when all was as it

should be and the heavens opens their

gates to anyone who reached out to them,

using their christian names, not the ones

they had been given when first birthed

by the ancient gods who traveled afar...

acriss tghe skies comes self assurance

waving like a banner as it floats aimlessly

first hovering like a feather until its

energies break through, tumbling down

into a steam, by a tree of indifference.

April 28, 2023

Crossing Over

for whom do I speak this day as

all my brothers and sisters live

in a world of turmoil and deceit;

pay to live and live to pay when

it is those who take and never

give back should be the ones 

dolling our the coin...   a world

recked by proverty and neglect

as those who hae want more...

and more...   and more...

for whom do I speak this day

that we should crowd into one

house to live with twenty meant

for only six and with our backs

still wet from crossing we know

no better than to just smile when

they slam the door in our faces...

for whom do I speak this day

as the rain falls on the ground

and the new grass seed grows

faster than our acceptance in 

this new land we struggled to

leaving so much of ourselves

along the shoreline as we ran...

for whom do I speak this day

when like so many other days we

thought more than we should have,

asking for more than we needed

just because we were new and 

knew no better...  still, it was not

so strange to have strangers take

us in and care for us, so that we

could die here with a little dignity.

April 28, 2023

Flowing Freely

rain fell on the vacant lot inside

my head today...  it was long

awaited and overdue...  pouring

down like the thoughts used to,

forming and reforming in an

order of perfections, juxtaposed

in perfect harmony with sentiments

and feelings, abitrarily jumping

into my mind...  soulful and rather

experienced in their purpose and

latent intentions...  and more...

rain fell on the vacant lot inside

my head today...  my eyes viewed

the ceremony in three dimensions,

time passed by slowly then stopped

as if it was going to repeat a phrase

or two before it leaped ahead...

savior faire, it said in passing, never

smiling until it was out of sight...

a mental lapse I suppose, but since

I was never there don't know for sure.

April 27, 2023

Godot's Wait

we live in precarious moments...  

waiting...  for the sun and rain,

for the age of reason

old age and wisdom

and for the birth of freedom

that arrives with death...

we hunt and stalk those who are

slightlyl different than us in

their ways of thinking and living,

in the hopes we can indoctrinate

them in the right way to be... 

we are who we have become

not what we wanted to be

or what we could have been,

but inot that which society molded;

we are wicked and evil 

kind and generous with a tint

of humility that extends beyond

our capacity to hate and love...

we are sick with greedy desires

manifested by all the toys we leave

laying out on our lawns each evening,

we drive instead of walkng,

allowing our bodies to match our

fat and weakened minds...

yet, we wait and continue to wait

for that which will never arrive.

April 26, 2023

Morning Waters

morning thoughts blur the vision

future worries abound

laws of the land avoided

entering without prohibitions

life looms low over the horizon

birds fly south in droves...

we send out alarms of concern

no one listens to our sounds

birds feed on the ground when hungry

we rely on neighborly gifts,

far from the land of hope and faith

our forefathers opened for us...

tears of the dead fill their graves

waterlogged feelings prevail,

we know not what we know not

nor do we care anymore...

time is the devil that preys 

on us all, sometimes taking us

earlier than we planned

and no amount of insurance

will ever make us feel better unless

has no signs of any red red skies.

April 25, 2023