BEAUTY, DAY AND NIGHT 

Seeing the leaves burst forth

from the gnarled, barren branches

has me think of Dame Ragnell.

We are all waiting for our beauty

to erupt from its dark enclosures,

from its tightly wound buds. 

Sovereignty is what sets us free.

No matter the climate

or season, we only ever

 ought to be blooming.

 

MAKING ALLOWANCES

A figure emerged 

from the clouds

as an ocean

of allowing.

He could be anyone.

But he wasn't.

What mattered most

was: only in

the quiet

of his quieting mind,

rivered in wisps

and thinning mists,

could a rose even think

to think to grow.

ROCKS IN THE MAIL

I mail apologies

to places I’ve been

where I was

a bad-mannered tourist 

or a thief 

in sheep’s clothing. 

Rocks are what I send.

They are my emissaries

because they know more 

than I ever will

and their silence is 

genuinely convincing.

But really it’s their sentience

I am sending. 

They have a presence

I could never muster.

My dentist will tell you: 

this guy is just 

one big cavity 

waiting to happened.

THE DRINK

You think 
you are missing 

your favorite 
mug, but 

you might as well
be pining over

Styrofoam
or a dixie cup.

The container’s what
you’re really craving:

the shape of the thing
that holds the drink.

Give that some thought,
why don't ya?