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Archive for the ‘Poetry’ Category

Lacunae

Posted in Poetry, Writing, tagged , , , , , , on 06 Sep 2026| Leave a Comment »

[
[
[        thunder from a clear sky
[
[
[myriad ways to say farewell but none can
[
[  words break, thoughts shatter, lay unfinished
[                                                inside my skin
[
[there is no part of my universe with which you are not entangled
[
[
[  empty vessels whisper unutterable truths of
[               absence
[
[ pilfered moments, stolen years
[     falling inward                building
[
[dark star of rage within my breast
[                                     you can’t you can’t you can’t
[
[swallow the gods—tin gods—that made it so
[
[cry out
[                      no sleep no dreaming no
[
[
[                                                unimaginable
[
[face close to mine, breath coupled
[                 the reverence of our
[
[        spills out onto barren steppes
[   together, only apart
[
[farewell my
[
[

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The Rabbit’s Hour

Posted in Creativity, Poetry, Seattle, tagged , , , , , on 16 Jul 2026| Leave a Comment »

after
one cancer scare
one heart attack
one hand surgery
one gained weight loss
I lace up my pickleball shoes
and return to the asphalt
of my suburban streets
to walk under skies filled
with the grey promise
of summer rain

it is The Rabbit’s Hour
that dawn-dim time of a summer’s morn
when the wild rabbits emerge
to munch the unmown fringe
between pastel mid-century homes
before ceding their world
to the one ushered in
by joggers with leashed labradoodles

the rabbit plays leapfrog
through curated gardens
past sword-leaf and yucca
but goes rock-still as I near
fixing me with
one onyx eye
a perfect cabochon bead
keeping me in full view
waiting

I slow as I pass
to appreciate longer
its inborn technique
of not being seen
heathered brown fur
blending with the drying grass

the eye does not blink
I am its only subject
its sole concern
its fate hanging on the breeze

the air shifts slightly
loaded with the perfect pairing
of petrichor and lavender
and as I continue onward
the nose twitches
once
twice

my pickleball shoes
have never been used
for their designed purpose
as I prefer to walk
among conifers and rhodies
when the world is sufficiently calm
for me to glimpse the place
where the rabbit world and mine
meet

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The Leaving

Posted in Poetry, tagged , , , , on 29 May 2026| Leave a Comment »

Sing to me, O Muse, of a complicated man,
this life self-forged through tragic fire,
crafted from scraps of tin and gold,
hammered thin by doom and choice,
quenched to brittleness in acid waters.

Show me how, through the veil of years,
these smoldering bones did carry
the multitude of atoms that both
sparkled and hissed, caressed and raged,
in this single, fractious, chimeric whole.

Write down for me the lines whereby
this fatal journey can be fathomed,
such modes contained and fit to reason
as stern-faced lesson or warning dire and not
chaotic spasms of an indifferent fate.

None of us, not one, are made of stuff so pure
that faults, once sought, remain unfound within our selves,
but if this one soul’s full account of light
can be so nearly blasted through then how did I,
who lived so near and for so long, escape untouched?

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Psalmody

Posted in Poetry, tagged , , , , , on 08 May 2026| Leave a Comment »

crouch down
before the glowing remnants
of the dying world
lay sap-heavy fronds
atop the ashes
inspire smoldering embers
to consume resinous wood

hear the snap
as awakened heat bites
spindles your offering
and ghostly tendrils
acrid sweet and thick
rise and twist
as fire consumes life

reach out
into the smoky column
grab handfuls
of perfumed essence
pull them close
lift them
to heart to throat to hair
bathe in strength released
breathe in this final transmutation

awaken now
renewed refreshed rejuvenated
eat the earth
touch the skies
and with tempered soul
sharpened eye
sinews taut
prepare to protect
the life you would bequeath
to the future

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Not Who We Are

Posted in Creativity, Poetry, tagged , , , , , , on 09 Apr 2026| Leave a Comment »

When we say that
This is not who we are
it is a lie

It is a lie
either clothed in chosen ignorance
or shrouded in collective aspiration

It is a lie because
we have been
all despised things

We have been
enslavers of millions
slayers of tribes
droppers of atom bombs
poisoners of air and water
oppressors of women
pillagers of nations

We have placed our knees
on necks of every color
at home and abroad
without remorse

We have ignored
friends’ pleas for aid
and denied entry at our borders
to those fleeing the same brand of tyranny
that birthed our nation

It is a lie
of the cruelest kind
when in denial of history
we believe the false is truth
to burnish our vainglory
whilst nodding acceptance
to our forebears’ crimes
absolving them
as ourselves

But even when uttered
swaddled in hope and
dreaming of a brighter future
it remains at its heart a lie
an unsubtle recasting of this moment
as mere aberration
and not the legitimate child
of centuries-long parentage

So do not tell me that
This is not who we are
for unless This is completely new
unseen before today
a crime unique amongst the millions
then it is entirely
who
we
are

Tell me instead
with all knowledge of our past
with all humility for our flaws and sins
with passion born of honest reflection that
This is not who we want to be
for then you will have spoken a truth
and gladly will I add my voice to yours

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Take a Break

Posted in Poetry, tagged , , on 19 Mar 2026| Leave a Comment »

take a break
put down the phone
open the door
go outside
see the sky
smell the world
feel the wind
find something nice
a flower, a tree, a snazzy car, a friendly face
close your eyes
smile a quiet smile
breathe
and tuck this image away
for future use
because when storm clouds gather
and fires of anger rage
we will need that cache of secret moments
to bolster our resolve
with memories of peace

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Lost Cat

Posted in Gardening, Poetry, tagged , , on 07 Feb 2026| Leave a Comment »

he appeared one day
four-footed storm cloud
walking up to our deck
like he’d been there all his life

I said hey and
he squinted a smile
rising up to nuzzle my
offer of friendship

he became a fixture
prowler in the gardens
riding shotgun on my shoulder
as he supervised my labors

but his candle was brief
his rumble now silenced
and his spot in the sun
forever empty

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