AMBITION 

Pull yourself up and out of the sludge.
Dig a well, farm the soil.

Join in creation, man!

Be the king in Kingdom.

Dodge doubt’s stampede.

Hear the earwigs as angels in your ear.

Blow the bad mood back to Diablo.

Let the word meniscus be your mantra.

Be the monk in burlap, rope and sandals

who orders a caffé mocha, with whip cream, 
chocolate and candy sprinkles on top.

Or the turtle rising 
from the depths toward the sun.

Be ripe for a renaissance.

Be the weft in the warp,

the chink in grief’s dam,

the mynah that says
“I am Condor, don’t be fooled!”

creativity flourishing like a kite,

the acolyte opening the temple door,

the child and the Cheerios,

the mosey and the whistle past the graveyard.

Be the zaftig deer, sated and not afraid.

In other words, dawgh:

dance with chaos,

so you can say “Yes, I Lindy Hop!”

WONDER-STRUCK

Arriving, departing. Red shoes shifting weight. Fingers on keypads, touch screens. Earring jostling on a lobe. Garbled communiqués. Sunglasses on. Green, red, black - backpacks and purses. Briefcases. Books and magazines. iPads. Apple earplugs and smart phones. Rubbing eyes, probing noses. Gloves. Bloomingdale bags. Rain clouds, bridges, the Bay - in windows. The tunnel-dark. Make-up and plaid. Sniffles and coughs. Seated and standing. Getting up, getting off, getting on. Gaining and losing balance. Eyes averting gazes. Lovers and snoozers. Readers, writers, and day-dreamers. Umbrellas. Sneakers and pumps. Rhinestone buckles. Dimples. The sound of Velcro. Cleavages and neckties. The jangle of clasps. Gripping hands. The shrill of scraping metal. Gestures and expressions. MacArthur, Millbrae, the Doors are Closing. The sound of turning pages. Curls and stubble. Conversations - intrusive and elusive. Dreads. Bi-focals. Percussion headsets can’t contain. Leather, cotton, tweed. Walkers, braces, bikes. Tremors. Twisting hair, chewing gum. Jackets on, jackets off. Patience and meanness. Itches and scratches. Diamonds and piercings. Tattoos and toupees. Gold crowns and gapped-teeth. Ruby-red lips. Wrinkles. Caps turned backwards. Laces being tied. Wheelchairs. The white stick of the blind. Yawns and sneezes. Badges and tears. A pink-plastic blossom in a hipster’s hand. Strangers. A witness wonder-struck. Humans on a train.

AMBIGUITY’S WISHLIST

A habit without impulse.

A surrendering chance.

Chaos and its negligence.

Ruthless luck.

Prescience in a camera.

Random transcendence.

A buxom vernacular.

An oracle's genius.

Passing through a fugitive turnstile.

A millimeter of difference.

A compulsive embrace.

A loogie in the eye of a skinflint.

Reality’s contact sheet.

Rhyme along the shoals of Nantucket.