Thanksgiving and Other Times

* * *

091127

NONE FOR ME, THANKS

Your banquet looks yummy;
so luscious and arty—
but my tummy’s in turmoil
from yesterday’s party.


091126

TODAY’S PRAISE

On this day, I’m thankful for:

Loving kin. A bed. A cup.
Sleeping till the sun comes up.
Ease of breath. Strength of limb.
Words and thoughts—like seraphim,
blunderbuss, marmalade and octopus.

On this day, I’m grateful for:

Time to see, to think, to write
and distill this world’s delight.


SO MANY FACETS!

Lauren and Lindsey:
sobriety, whimsey.

Lindsey and Lauren:
familiar, fresh, foreign.


[ASIDE: My friend's granddaughters;
wonderful girls.]


091125

BITTER, SALTY,
SOUR, SWEET

More pronounced
with passing years:
these four flavors
of our tears.


091124

WILD OATS, THEN OATMEAL

Dear underdressed and oversexed—
You're so cute!
Enjoy it while you got it.

Whether you were given it, earned it,
learned it, bought or thought it—
enjoy it while you got it.

Then, overdressed and undersexed,
enjoy what you get next.


091123

INVERSIONS

Sunny. Cloudy.
Sunny. Cloudy.
I'm managing okay,
but how is the weather?


091122

SOUL GOAL

To feel it, be it, flow it—
to love and be loved
and know it.


091121

GET OFF THE BUS

It isn’t business anymore;
everything’s a rush
of hurried-this, shortened-that,
acronyms, and such.

It isn’t business anymore.
Gee whiz, it’s biz –
it isn’t even bus!


091120

THANKS

It's hard-times times—
playing hide-and-seek
in the dark with fate—
but
I'm grateful to be grateful
for all that doesn't grate.


091119

WEEK DAZE

MON. No fun.
TUE. No clue.
WED. Half-dead.
THUR. Wake. Stir.
FRI. Fly high.
SAT. Fall flat.
SUN. So done.


091118

WHAT OUR COWORKERS SAID

“You’re the first people
that it happened to
that we’re really sad
it happened to.”


YESTERDAZE

Stories about feelings;
that is the past—
stories about feelings
about things that don't last.


COM-YOU-NICATION

"Dibs after you!"

It's smart,
even in a two-person household
to stake your claim.


MY BEST WORK

Besides background and references,
the company's director of communications
job application required six examples
of personally-written documents
as evidence of expertise.

For the sixth sample,
the kamikaze in me submitted a poem.


091117

WHAT, AGAIN?

Life keeps revealing to me
how absent-minded I am
through the many things
I forget to do
again and again and again.


091116

DISCERNMENT

Then, times were good;
prosperity came. We rode its crest.
Oh, how we were blessed!

Now, times are bad,
but gratitude is unrepressed.
Oh, how we are blessed!


091115

BIKINI GIRL

You think we’re the kind
who disapproves—
but we have news!

Hon, we too
had our time in the sun.

* * *

[ASIDE: Cleaned out old papers the other day
and found some poem snippets which became the basis
for some of the poems in this batch.]

* * *

Mostly Scaredy Things

***


091114

I’M SCARED, SOMETIMES

I’m scared of the playground
I’m scared of getting lost
I’m scared of loud noises
I’m scared of my parents yelling
I’m scared of dark places
I’m scared of what’s under that rock
I’m scared of bugs crawling on me
I’m scared of slimy things
I’m scared of pinchy things

I’m scared of thunder
I’m scared of the woods
I’m scared of spiders
I’m scared of numbers and counting
and being dumb

I’m scared of having to tell
I’m scared of bullies
I’m scared of smashed animals,
blood and stinky bodies

I’m scared of being left behind
I’m scared of icicles that might fall on me
I’m scared of Christmas trees that might burn
I’m scared of school

I’m scared to die
I’m scared of things I think up
I’m scared of being hollered at
I’m scared of some men who seem icky
and want to hug me

I’m scared of too much to learn
I’m scared of tests
I’m scared of forgetting
I’m scared of not knowing
I’m scared of the big kids

I’m scared of telephone poles
I’m scared of losing something important
I’m scared of not being picked
I’m scared of peeing in my pants
I’m scared of hurting my dog or kitty
I’m scared of getting sick
I’m scared of being ugly

I’m scared of scary stories
I’m scared of burning my hand
I’m scared of biting my tongue
I’m scared of losing my homework
I’m scared of falling in the water
I’m scared of trees that look like monsters
when the sun goes down

I’m scared of medicine
I’m scared of barking dogs
I’m scared of thorn bushes
I’m scared of turning out bad
I’m scared of money
I’m scared of no money
I’m scared of angry people
I’m scared of giving the wrong answer
Did I do okay?


IDIOT

It’s like this—
the past is a stack of coins
you had once and spent.
And now is the dime
you swore you’d turn on
when things got dicey.
And—why aren’t you moving,
you little beggar?


091114

POSITIVELY UNCERTAIN

While wondering about wonders
that this life can bring,
I wonder what would happen
if I said “yes” to everything.


091113

CLASSIFIED

The job ad
didn’t give all the particulars,
but enough—

Compensation:
commiserate with experience.


091112

WORKER TOLL

Business is booming
in crescendos of collapse.
Workers touch up resumes,
skills, and epitaphs.


091111

CHANGE MASTERY

Toying with a tidbit
picked up yesterday:
that habits of perception trap.

Want change?
Pay attention. Seek surprises.
Notice what is different.
Be alert to the extraordinary.


CALLED

“Come?” my friend asked,
in town for the night.

“Come!” I replied,
out the door in full flight.


[ASIDE: The call was to come to the restaurant
next to the hotel, for food and visiting.]


091110

OTHERS WITH SECRETS

You want to tell.
You want to explain.

You want one other person
to know your story
(not to carry your burden
but just to know you carry it).

Keeping silent anyway,
you realize or conclude—

Others valiantly harbor secrets.
It’s okay to admire yourself.


091109

HIT AND MISSED

Yesterday, guinea hens
roamed the highway,
where they'd never been before.

Now the flock is penned,
except for the stray
who, well, simply is no more.


091108

NIGHT WATCH

I’ve taken to
sleeping by day,
writing by night.

Our house is quiet now,
except for sea-surf sounds
from the other side of the bed.


091107

REVIEW

It was a good time to live.
A good place, too.

I made my
thousand-and-one choices.
I have no regrets,
that I know of,
yet.

It seemed wise
and courteous
not to bear children.

It seemed absurd
to take faith on faith.

It seemed that life
would get better and better
and it did,
for awhile,
for some.

It was a good time to live.
A good place, too.
A good life.

I have faith.


091106

COPING

Sometimes he crashes
and sleeps, like now.
Other times, I do.

Together,
whatever's past, future or now,
we'll get through.


091105

EXCHANGE

at eagle-cry:
people outdoors
cats indoors


091104

GRAY-SKY SCENE

buzzards
slowly
air-swirling:

connect-the-dot
funnel cloud


091103

MY POMES

My pomes are for me
an’, Darlin’-poo,
if you like ‘em,
they're for you.


091102

SOOTER

Awkwardly
an’ awkwordly,
brangin' odd gifts,
an' discombob’latin'
everthang,
crisis comes a'courtin'.


091101

GIVE?

Some
say soon
they might.

Some
already gave
their mite.


091031

DEJA VOODOO

Each October,
there's one night
of ghastly horror,
gore and fright—
if I remember right.


KOOKY MONSTERS

Maybe this sounds kooky,
but things are getting spooky!


091030

OKAY BY ME

it’s equally—
i don’t know why

when low low low
when high high high

i don’t care
if i live or die


091029

OPERATION OVERLOAD

Print was bad enough
in any form.

Now media onslaughts
are the norm.


091028

AT EASE

Home, free;
liberty!

Liberty;
home free!


091027

NEW SPRINT

Hurry! Hurry!
Narrow the topics,
the columns, the page.
Reduce the margins
and everyone’s wage.

Quickly Quickly!
Consolidate functions.
Restructure or merge.
Cut budgets and staff.
Don’t anyone splurge!

Now! Now!
Assuage the subscribers
by slashing each fee.
They demand a free press—
literally!


091026

FINIS

I’d better do my writing
while I still can hold a thought;
the day is fast approaching
when all I’ll have is naught.


091025

MUTANTS

My poems start out happy,
then they make a twist.
Somehow they turn sappy,
woebegone or pissed.


091024

HALT

You can stop death
and all heartbreaks.

Just stop nature.
That's all it takes.


091023

WITHDRAWAL

Did I blunder,
posting that first twit?
How long has it been?

Now I wonder—
can a “twitter quitter”
become anonymous again?


091022

THE END

No matter what I write,
if I polish it awhile,
when the piece is finished,
I finish with a smile.


091021

WRITTEN OFF

Barnes & Noble, Amazon,
Wal-Mart, Target, and so on—
everywhere one looks,
they’ve slashed the price of books.

Wait, here’s a coincider:
I’ve just become a writer!


***