mouse sized
Monday, May 23, 2016
anti-gravity
he wants to talk seriously
of outer space, carry
free will
and lunar axes
like shoulder-weight angels
i am wry and restless,
drive the baby's toy car
up his fidgeting leg
my gaze narrowed
to the
infinitesimal
Monday, May 2, 2016
Speaking Tongues
the little moan fills my head -
continuous hornet-rasp,
the off-kilter whine
of wires lost underground
you can read anything
into a cloud-darkened sky;
omen is a pretty word
this growl, low and tight
as a bone caught in the throat,
lays flat
an empty staircase
but simmers every wall
in the house with its pungency
Friday, February 13, 2015
Friday the 13th
two-faced morning,
dazzling winter sun
over the flat cold creep
blackjacking temples.
the gurgle and roar
of cars expiring
mid-intersection,
the holler of men
carving up streetcorners.
amid strewn salt
strange detritus
frozen into the sidewalk:
rubber bands
childish slips and omens.
a sparrow lost
in the hollow room of night:
she bares her throat to the ground
arrow-straight, empty,
a warning
of claws in my gloved palm.
inside
I scrub my hands,
the water too cold, too hot.
dazzling winter sun
over the flat cold creep
blackjacking temples.
the gurgle and roar
of cars expiring
mid-intersection,
the holler of men
carving up streetcorners.
amid strewn salt
strange detritus
frozen into the sidewalk:
rubber bands
childish slips and omens.
a sparrow lost
in the hollow room of night:
she bares her throat to the ground
arrow-straight, empty,
a warning
of claws in my gloved palm.
inside
I scrub my hands,
the water too cold, too hot.
Monday, August 25, 2014
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Dervish
dervish
eyes sealed
amid the grit
twirl, howl
head bent low
hands hoisting
unfavorable skies
shake down walls
to crumbling clay
tie your hands in knots
pound tunnels
into the hard earth
and vanish
from this land Sunday, March 30, 2014
Quick Fix
A quickie poem inspired by Writing Exercise #99 by Rachel McKibbens.
Fix
Fix your face, she snapped, her nerves a rat's nest of chewed wires
Fix this stale house, this persistent onion smell
Fix the broken crib, baby death rattle in every toothless coo
Fix the cat’s meandering litterbox snub
Fix the ominous car-engine thud
Fix the crumbling cement wall, spitting stones onto the sidewalk
Fix the plate I dropped when anger loosened my joints
Fix my torn back, pinched nerves, feet cramped into useless clubs
Fix my thundering ire, my soaring disgust
Fix the way I perch on the tip of a needle
Fix the day I lost weeping in bed, sky swallowed by black
Fix how we never close our eyes at the same time
Fix the paperthin void that remains between our palms when we clasp hands
Fix my broken arms, how they push when they should embrace
Fix
Fix your face, she snapped, her nerves a rat's nest of chewed wires
Fix this stale house, this persistent onion smell
Fix the broken crib, baby death rattle in every toothless coo
Fix the cat’s meandering litterbox snub
Fix the ominous car-engine thud
Fix the crumbling cement wall, spitting stones onto the sidewalk
Fix the plate I dropped when anger loosened my joints
Fix my torn back, pinched nerves, feet cramped into useless clubs
Fix my thundering ire, my soaring disgust
Fix the way I perch on the tip of a needle
Fix the day I lost weeping in bed, sky swallowed by black
Fix how we never close our eyes at the same time
Fix the paperthin void that remains between our palms when we clasp hands
Fix my broken arms, how they push when they should embrace
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Vernal
Sparrows tear the slender yellow grass
and fold it between their wings.
Dogs snuff the chainlink corners,
matted thatch and loam churned
by an army of awakened nematodes
and the polearm thrusts of crocus.
The bluesky battle
of ice-borne breezes
over warm soil,
melting river water
muddying the thawed banks.
Across the city, birds of prey
dredge gravel trenches and squat,
between thunderclaps birth
mottled eggs, sea-green or onion skin stained,
dried and cooled in the curve of
skyscraper airstreams.
The spit of snow
on feathered shoulders,
lace-edges bronzed with the curl
of strong sunshine.
Our legs move in tandem;
mine bear us across scuffed bridges
while yours turn and stretch,
warm in my nest of blood.
The hand of winter, elegant fingers,
lingers on the pulse of my throat
but I exhale, beware, bewitch,
coax my heart to speak spring
into our twined souls,
reveal our knotted roots, sipping
from the same stream.
and fold it between their wings.
Dogs snuff the chainlink corners,
matted thatch and loam churned
by an army of awakened nematodes
and the polearm thrusts of crocus.
The bluesky battle
of ice-borne breezes
over warm soil,
melting river water
muddying the thawed banks.
Across the city, birds of prey
dredge gravel trenches and squat,
between thunderclaps birth
mottled eggs, sea-green or onion skin stained,
dried and cooled in the curve of
skyscraper airstreams.
The spit of snow
on feathered shoulders,
lace-edges bronzed with the curl
of strong sunshine.
Our legs move in tandem;
mine bear us across scuffed bridges
while yours turn and stretch,
warm in my nest of blood.
The hand of winter, elegant fingers,
lingers on the pulse of my throat
but I exhale, beware, bewitch,
coax my heart to speak spring
into our twined souls,
reveal our knotted roots, sipping
from the same stream.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)