Moon Dance

 

caught between the dark clouds    

the golden orb spins counter 

to one's intuition - illumination

backlights darkness, casting

down pale-yellow light mixed

with the haze already billowing

forth as cumulous pillows too

soft upon which to sleep...

shadows simmer in the sky's pot

like something on a firepit to

which attention must be given,

shades of yellowy greyness

forge upward as if attempting to

change the pitch-black ink spilled

across the heavens, hoping to

cover the remaining faint light,

dancing carelessly toward the

reflection that has beckoned it.

March 30, 2025

Editing Differences

 

Outside or in - inside or out

we are one with ourselves

viewing life around us

accepting life within

wishing for the moments

when the two blend...

reflections of who we are

or want to be, come

pouring out the senses,

we edit the differences,

keep our thoughts silent

and subversive as we mold

post to the future,

determining right angles of

thought and triangles of

equalities under the sun,

shadows hide our dreams

beside the ones we left

there yesterday morning

when views were similar.

March 29, 2025

Voyeur

on the other side

eyes focus,..  retaining

what they can for

later when not so alone,

unaware, the hold the

keys to passion,

unaware, the perform

silent rituals,

unaware, they share what

they do not want to as

caring and love remains

forever private...

on the other side

eyes squint to take it all in

to remember and imagine

what it would be like

it was reverse...

who's privacy would be

available to see,

who's would be violated?

March 29, 2025

Moon Ponds

the fullness of the night's sky ripples

through the absent day...

and over the banks of the small ponds

attempting to catch its reflections,

the curved earth knows no limitations

knows no resistance from the

flocks of trees along its banks...

rocks hold the old ones while

tentative roots dig into the clay

from which the pots that hold the liquid

were made from decades ago,

when these seedlings had just

dropped from above, 

flung to the side by the wind

that knew no other course,

the small fish became large and

were easily caught by the lads who

imagined great things from a full moon.

March 28, 2025

 

Cavern Caveats

mirror-like waters reflect what we don't see
pools flow under and around
streamers of yellows and blues mark the walls
allowing normal traffic to pass through,
purple hues guide our sight
directing us under and from within
platforms appear incidental
Shadows define the light that dwells
inside the recesses and crevices.
undisturbed water flows centuries long.
without interference or interludes
Rocking patterns yet to be defined or brought
into question by those who doubt.
the unknown penetrates before invasion
time wrestles with its own eventualities,
water carved out this underground tomb
and we saw it either first or last depending
upon the perspective of one's awareness.

March 27, 2025

Day's End

into the boat the water washes

not salty at all

as some would say it is...

perhaps,

it is my location or a wrong reading

on the compass stowed below,

perhaps,

it is the gods who have sent us thusly

to explore our destiny

or someone else's yet to be discovered.

it is a strange dialect that

surrounds me now...

these heavens seem to be closing in,

making the world smaller

more finite,

less encompassing than when

first, we sailed these waters,

low and behold

the sun guides our reckoning...

we are at day's end.

March 25, 2025

A Mental Pond

 

gently
blows the morning breeze,
briskly
my heart flutters openly,
factually
a cat-like creature sits upon my shoulder
poised to pounce on unsuspecting prey,
recklessly
my eyes search the surrounding area,
reluctantly
the whiteness of her emerges - an assumed gender
why else alone?
intrigued by the reflections and shadows
emersed in solitude
pensive and practical,
delayed interpretation of reality - exposure
trepidations in tentative turmoil...
why else here?
for my beauty - my sight - my fantasies delayed
could it be?
a harmony emerges
well within my range...
honestly
I'm glad I came here today.

March 25, 2025

Egos

 
moments pass slowly
days overly age
skies belabor the point
no one wants to know,
drifting alone
absence of mind
wondering
but thoughtless
a vacuum of expression
no one hears
no one sees
no one understands
the dilemma ahead...
behind hope's left
gone or stolen
it matters not,
we end what began
beginning what ended
long ago...
we seek and
find nothing,
sharing not what we
don't have or want,
your conclusions
my tomorrows
my futures are
your only past.

March 24, 2025

Easy Pickins

we grip the threads of success
maybe once or twice
if we are lucky - none at all
is the typical way it goes...
some of us, spin gold just as
easily as sipping a cup of tea
in the afternoon gardens
of our neighbor's desires...
we were destined to be wealthy
or poor - no in-between...
not just yet anyway - we will
know more tomorrow we believe,
nocturnal fences we build then
destroy as our needs progress,
and we stumble over currencies
lying around on the floor...
as if it dropped off of trees
we planted the other day...
it comes easy to some of us
others not so much but we get it
all the same, sharing it with those
who need it less and less...
a graveyard of new ideas
a river to float them on
bored navigators sitting on docks
waiting to toss out the line...
the wealthy never get greedy
they just get wealthier
never hesitating to keep it close.

March 22, 2025

Wisdom Chasing

along the road to wisdom
we take many other paths
that look most promising
only to find they were
detours...  taking us away
from the road on which
we needed to be...  we are
alarmed by our inability to
make correct decisions,
our inability to make
correct judgements until
fully experiencing the
wrong turns we took along
the way...  but the way was
never marked - there were
no signs to guide or to
directed our movements...
we were left forsaken,
abandoned, left to perish
in the vast wilderness of
life - a life of which we 
knew very little...  not at
all like we had imagined,
where it was gifted and
wrapped with a bow...
spoiled and infatuated, we
stumbled our way through
life, carrying what we could
in our pockets like the coins
of the ancients...  a mess of
life we made, until wisdom
informed us in no uncertain
terms - it no longer mattered.

March 22, 2025

Longboats Arriving

longboats row to shore unevenly
an uncertain metaphor plays out
grandma sits on the back porch
stitching up the holes in her
son's theoretical theories...
grandpa sits on the front porch
hoping the black coal will turn
white soon from this morning,
Elanor's vacation plans have 
suffered minute changes since
toxic cargoes been offloaded,
june bugs await their arrival
in empty coffee cans formerly
used for fishing worms...
rain scrubs all backyard plans
until further notice as morning
flowers wish to get saturated...
desperate critters roam the yard
looking for kindness and a place
to spend the night - washing their
teeth in the falling rain...  we see
the ends before the means and
have no justification at all...
morning brings the longboats
to our shores without considering
the rituals disturbed by their
inevitable presence and daring. 

March 19, 2025

Vacation Somewhere

east to west - north to south
we venture forward each year
as wandering tourists looking
for the ideal location...
waves and rides and sunning
tours, history, and meals
sometimes adventure and a
little hiking to get there,
sometimes air travel or a
seat on a high-speed train,
it is different each year for some
others like the routine of similar,
we know not what the year
will bring or take away, but we
do know we will not miss one
of our annual vacations...
unless too sick or too dead
we shelter in place and hope
for a quick passing until the next,
when plans are put into place
and actions taken, money spent,
it matters not where we go
as long as we go somewhere.

March 19, 2025

Life Predicted

by the rules we live for some
others use their wealth to
arrange right or wrong
truth or lies...  wanting 
just to prevail if convenient,
judges manipulated by politics
contributions made for favors
no one is honest or above the
unless almighty dollar prevails,
we seek our justice like our
fathers want and predicted as
the best route forward until
greed intervened, skewing
the results of life for those
who seem to have it all
against those who do not...
we are greater and bolder
than imagined, larger than
life itself - telling others how
to live and when to die as if
we became the creator of all
things real and imagined.

March 19, 2025

Lost Creek

 
shadows on the left
light on the right
cut out of rocks it runs
parallel to life
and then some, it says
on the brochure
lying on the ground...
water flows under
over and around,
bouncing wherever
between the trees 
and grasses, coming
from nowhere...
no origins, no endings
just flowing freely in the
midst of life - both sides it
dwells wherever, depending
upon nothing and having
litte affect surroundng
what it seems to care least for
or so it is, maybe not but
it streams onware and 
forward nonetheless bound
for its conclusions out there.

March 18, 2025

The Unexpected

cool air replaces warm
warmer comes back around
cool persists to remain...
spring arrives robustly
winter dragged along behind,
fears turn to tears as twisters
tear up in between us,
hiding in the celars
most of the night listening
to the wicked howls of
the northeastern winds
feeling their way through
the valley in which so many
of us currently live...
mindful of what not to care for
is gone for good while those
that were precious are safe,
lucky in life favors frew
when the time arrives that
you are the least important.

March 17, 2025

Imaginations Unfulfilled

rain fills the belly of the ground
its soil nurouses the grasses that
feed the animals, killed by the
human who roam the land,
taking more than they give...
rain fills the belly of the oceans
that provides life for all the
smaller fishes roaming around,
who are eaten by larger ones
who in turn are eaten by even
larger one, eventually being
killed by humans who still
roam the land and who still
take more than they give...
humans are the enemy to all
the nature that grows freely
on this planet becauae of the
weather and the sun, destroyed
over and over again by humans
who think they know it all...
remove the humans and survival
for eath happens automatically.

March 16, 2025

Valley Rain

sheets of rain
off in the distance
move across the valley
like waves crashing
into the shoreline
along the coast,
a primeordial
feeling at best...
in the mirror seen
of our woody
vintage but moving,
local music in the
speakers playing,
rolls and rhythms,
we are possessed...
the rain persistent
blows us away
riding on its sounds
and candences,
brandishing thoughts,
too many to count,
in the breeze swaying
like palm trees.

March 15, 2025

Saving in Time

saving dailight
saving time
saving what we can
in order to be fine,
noble and expediant
they say...
of course what they know
they do not say,
we are left with our
own interpretations
and explanation...
saving the neighborhood
is determination
and leads our souls,
saving mankind is 
another story
for another day
perhaps a lifetime
or two...  not even
possible they think and
they should know...
we are left with saving
what we can,
letting all else go by.

March 14, 2025

Forecasting

rain or no rain the forecast says
unsure as always as to what it will be
fortune telling at its best or maybe
a failed palm reader...  we live
our lives around the weather
what to wear - what to take
what to buy - what to break
each day is different or the same
we know not what until it happens
and then we are unsure of it all
until the night erases it all...
beholden to no one we are or
at least want to be or say we say,
but when it ccmest time to vote
we look the other way and all
to often regret those decisions
however weak they may be...
tell me Mr teller of fortunes
can you predict our weather like
you predict my future and is it
based upon how much you charge
or the insights you might have?
tell me true or fill out this quiz
and we will predicate your answers
on what the weather says it is.

March 18, 2025

Shadow Man

 

dark night black surrounds

total and complete

ace of spades blacks

highlights the left seen

a man's shape determined

by the head hat worn,

other features vanish

as they should

only an outline remains

body implied - nothing real,

determined or undermined

we assume the clues valid

implied with magic

mental integrity defined

no shadows seen

or detected...

unless of the reality...  and yet

it appears to be what it is,

the image runs our thoughts

manipulate our vision

distorts our impressions,

\it is real and believed.

March 12, 2025

Viewpoints

fickle are the points of view from
which there are no returns...
censored by the priests of hate
and predetermined attitudes...
crimson are the colors
blue is their passion
green is their love of life...
there is no discrimination,
except for the fishtails cut off
and discarded in sewers of time,
living long and thorough,
there are no clocks, seasons or
passages leading us astray...
we are the victims of our own
hubris - compassion hangs on the
line with other wet garments, 
never to be worn again until we
surrender all our thoughts...
all our fantasies and dreams...
all our miscalculations,
withdrawing all pleas of innocence.

March 11, 2025

Light

light has no color, no tones or hues
light has no smell or tastes except
what its currents bring with it...
light is flameproof and incapable
of being destroyed until replaced
by darkness, then ceases to exist;
although, only in one hemisphere
as it is alive and well in another,
rotation and curvature are the
culprits here, along with gravity
and juxtaposition...  element over
which we have no control as life
changes between the two periodically,
coping with these changes as we do,
simplifying their existence to keep
our own transformation in line...
light has no beginning or end, yet
it has origination to be here or not,
as it moves forward in time and in
constant circles in space...   we, at
the center, enjoy when it arrives
retire when it is not, always awaiting
its return with a renewed energy.

March 10, 2025

Morning Silence

morning silence lingers in the air
controlled not by seasons
nor by the atmosphere or environment,
but by the tension of words,
their different meanings and understandings,
from child and adult to the
disassociation of genders and race,
purpose and without the same
pushing and stumbling into place
like elephants with a water bucket,
contempt, dislike, and hate fuel some
while ego and dominance lead the way,
superior feelings and attitude
whether deserved or not is standard for the
ranting and ravings of morning silence,
sowing discord routinely, not a crime
nor a necessity save for bullies...
control is mistaken for dominance
dominance is substituted for wishful
thinking tainted by jealousies...
males and females' co-existence futile,
bears no resemblance to what is needed,
still necessary for security and growth.

March 9, 2025

Sunlight Breeze

whispering winds blow through trees

as gently as sunlight reflects off
windowsills - shades pulled down,
mothers watch toddlers catch the light
that will not be contained...  gentle
breezes blow southwar butd, into the
valley rustling up the brush that live
close to the foothill of the smokies,
shades are drawn or worn depending
upon the moment and those participating,
clouds cast out of heaven flow in between
comfort rendered indirectly, time is
passed from one generation to another
until the seeds of our destruction are
no longer planted in the soil and
harvested in the fall along with the
crops sole at the marketplace for
pennies on the dollar, knowing they
will no longer be minted...  we are
hesitant to miss the parade but are
much appreciating the sunlight.

March 8, 2025

Optimism

fleeting moments follow us around
skies crumble into darkness,
patterns of the hawk live within
our hearts - we are all victims
of our own rabid successes...
the mighty have fallen and arisen
erected new structures to which
we must now pay homage...
the sun burns hole through our
timeless thoughts that have
ventured too far into the future;
we can only cure what we want,
living imprecise lives with
what we cannot...  still wishing for
miracles from a god in which
we no longer believe or have the
faith that perpetuates our optimism.

March 7, 2025

Winter's Death

cold bursts from around my back
reclining chair and all,
windows hold back the frost
cats warm my belly...
a clock on the wall says ten am
late for an appointment again,
summertime dreams have got
me a little flustered
as spring struggles to break in,
dancing elves on the back porch seen
far away from imagination,
sit on the couch, staring impolitely
when passing the hat around
attracts no paper...
rooftops reach up towards the sky
begging for admission,
trees whose limbs bend precariously
asking for redemption,
the winter bleeds out its cold
preparing for mumification as we
relax in sunrooms with mini splits.

March 6, 2025

Mutually Inconvenient

wind and rain
fire and ice
ancient remedies
full of advice,
reluctant athletes
compete for prize,
talented attorneys
poorly defend clients,
rule of law
hardly ever enforced
illegals kill where
the law will not...
doctors prescribe pills
for the sick,
the sick sell the pills
for drugs...
we are at a crossroads
with our understandings,
taking for granted
more than we should,
divers swim the oceans
for strange fish,
adventurers follow
treasure maps where
fish no longer roam,
fire and ice hide
the wind and rain,
only to be seen as
mutually inconvenient.

March 5, 2025

Palms and Water

 

easy morning sun rests on the horizon

on a pillow of foreboding clouds

palm trees bent from previous struggles

lay close to water, blocking out sun,

we bask inside the memories of it all

wishing for more, knowing not time,

pink sands held our footprints

tourists provided our entertainment,

it was a time of good will and fortune

not struggles no commitments just a 

little of this and a little of that

tossed around with healthy weather

of which we ate more than a bunch,

it was a time of innocence and gratitude,

wishful thinkings, dreams, and fantasies

most of which were just around the corner

from where we were vacationing,

with photos in an album and glasses

in the shelf, we were part of it all

Bringing back just a little to share.

March 4, 2025

First Fog

 

less traveled

is the road I walk,

light fades to dark

darkness my only friend

comes out to play,

too often alone

is the journey I take

my only companion

is the fog,

heavy is the heart

I bear these days as my

travels often offer little 

future hope for me,

an illusion

a figment of your

imagination...

leaving me strangled

on the side of a

gothic brick fantasy,

crippled by the terms of

our agreement,

a legacy never given,

deep in the soul of

your depression.

March 3, 2025

Self Incrimation

in the heart of nothingness, we survive
clinging to our preconceived ideas...
we rage against what we do not want
to understand, accepting what we know
no longer works in our society...
praising those who bring it about
condemning those who tear it down...
in the soul of insanity we bathe our
bodies with its idiosyncrasies while
basking in the limelight of condemnation
of what we were told to no longer believe,
we are righteous in our pursuits of life
and all the laws we disobey to get there,
we want more and more, giving less
and less, believing it is our solemn
right to be this way, hating those who
disagree with our selfishness...
a new breed of citizen we are or have
become and it is up to us to build this
nation in that image of self-imagination.

 March 2, 2025

Negotiations

frustration increases on the normal
side of anxious reality...  protocols
dictate what is or what is not...
tempers flares as risk diminishes
with words expressed incorrectly
and interpretations always favor
those who have the least to lose.
both side revel in the spotlights
advisors meek and bold suggest
failing strategies and the deal
crumbles like bowls of over-
cooked cookies...  soon to be
carted off to the poor and needy.
fingers pointing at the opposition
glad that failure has taken place,
outcomes are no longer important
as long as nothing is gained and
all ventures finally suspended...
holes in the curtains block out
less sun but allow penetration
of peeper's eyes seldom referred
to as voyeurs...  noble is the cause
and horrendous is the downfall of
those who deemed themselves too
nimble for mistakes to catch them.

March 1, 2025

Sunlight Entering

sunshine morning begins the day
enters the house and sunroom,
pushes out the darkness of sleep
awakened and refreshed...
outside coolness washes our face,
chilly and cold the day really is,
false impressions must beware,
knowing who we are or to be
can only arrive slowly...
impeached by the weather of
transition, we misjudged our
environment of light...
sunlight brings warmth and
coolness - it does not change
to season to what they are not,
we suspect and dream and
fantasize but we are never there
until warmth inside comes from
without the outside sunlight.

February 28, 2025

Young Citizen

speak up young citizen if you dare
let them know how you feel,
voice your opinion strongly or
someone will voice it for you...
lay down you burden and
follow me for I am the truth
and the light of the world,
I am righteousness and all
things good in this world...
stand on your own young
citizen, if you dare to be
counted with the rest of us,
pull our your mental sword
speak your mind to those who
desire to oppress you and all
that you stand for and believe,
live out your life in wisdom
that you maintain your rightful
innocence to be who you are,
go where you want to go and
think what you want to think,
lay down you life young citizen 
your truth will finally prevail.

February 27, 2025

Wonderous

we see life everywhere
in the skies
on the ground
in trees and bushes
in the leaves of grass
worms underground,
in the waters...  seas, 
creeks, ponds and oceans,
how wonderous
it all is or seems to be,
how glorious
is the creator of all,
yet it came from nothing
something from emptiness,
in the heavens long ago
before anything was
it was will be...
no time there was either
starting together
nonexistence to life
zero time now passes
how wonderous
what we have really is,
remarkable in how
it all came to be,
and we are part of it all,
now it seems
with our current lives.

February 26, 2025

Thirty Days

Rome burned and Mt Olympus quivered

Knights of the table round grouped,

Popes and Cardinals sat on thrones

while citizens of France ate cake...

history tells a different story when

written by those who did not win and

when read aloud to children takes the

form of a fairy tale or ghost story...

we rid ourselves of fools everyday

and in so doing make us stronger or

so, the soothsayers say - when in reality

the world is just as dangerous as before

perhaps moreso since it advances every

decade or so with or without our help,

we are crude examples of life yet we

have survive for this long and will

continue to do so despite the gods who

predict we will collapse in thirty days.

February 25, 2025

Patriots

how fleeting are we
creatures of lesser gods
dominion over all
not over ourselves...
weak as a sparrow
crazy as a fox
the devil incarnate
oblivious to it all...
our lives forfeit
damage already done
no one wins the game
except those who sold
the tickets - we are shy
of insanity, too bold
for encouragement and
too lazy to exercise...
nothing begins before it
has ended once we have
disapproved of all its
surroundings - we call
ourselves real patriots.

February 24, 2025

But Once We Are

sunshine through the window comes
melting outside frost,
dangers of the cold persist while
remaining cozy inside,
heat penetrates the senses
cold defines its boundaries
solutions no longer exist for some
others perish from too much,
alive we are but once
dead we are forever,
playfully we skip rope in the sun
voyeurs watching from inside,
windows magnify the distance
adjusting speed accordingly,
space has no limitations
except life does not survive,
bound for the future we are
wanting now only a thermal
increase to our predetermination.

February 23, 2025

Dimensional Caretakers

time lives on the other side of reality

reality controls time's advancement,

the universe is stunned by the birth

of coincidence it had buried in black

holes after the cosmic inflation...

exponential was the growth that

until now was forgettable and will

become lesser known once time

and reality join forces, creating

warped dimensions who's whole

responsibility lies with the inherent

explanation of spacetime...  a time

where space is nonexistent and 

what we see or experience is only

illusion's reality - we exist on the

edge of non-existence and the

dimensional caretakers that have

arisen out of nothingness and

have become our guardians.

February 22, 2025