Constructing Values

One by one we construct
values
out of nothing but memory
and experience
some hidden inside 
innate desires to live
we call good
and darkly night sounds
of a nature that chills
our minds with death
as natural as life
yet we build our values
and my values
sometimes thinking a Creator
is like us
yet at night we know 
that death is the food 
of life
a cycle that we clothe
with myth
so that life stripped bare
is hidden from view
in modesty we value
life to be
beauty we call it
the surface
decorated 
to dazzle our eyes
as 
it
must
do.

War and Peace

I once pressed wildflowers
inside heavy books
like War and Peace
only to be forgotten
until years later
when I looked to reread 
Tolstoy
and instead found
star bursts 
of Queen Anne's lace
on stained words
that spoke 
to my imagination
of beauty
long waiting
for the light
of day.

The End of Spring

The End of Spring

Long ago
in a small village
in China
they all sat around 
a large table 
with scissors in hands
cutting colorful silk 
like flower petals and
the old man with thin
copper wire constructed
stems and glued green
leaves and shaped them
just so
that across an ocean
on the dining room table
a silk bouquet would be
there for nearly 
a lifetime and dusted 
occasionally 
and never did
a seed come to life
or a bud burst open
to greet a bee
or butterfly
with nectar 
or pollen
just like that
flower 
so long ago
that the old man
studied 
in his garden
in a small 
village
in China.

Toe to Toe

In my head
right and wrong
often go
toe to toe
playing their game
with my mind
as I try
to construct
actions
that define
who
I am.

I Caught My Breath

I caught my breath
before the last 
few steep steps 
that would take me to
the top of the world
it wasn't a mountain top
but a desert mesa top 
that overlooked a valley
and below a river 
that now looked like 
a silver ribbon 
that seemed to be 
following the setting sun
and there I turned
and began my hike down
to save the table 
for another day
when I hoped 
I'd be ready 
for just
that moment.

The Game

For the sake of peace
have it your way
in all things
I care not much 
for my mind 
is busy at the moment
trying to decide
if the Celtics 
have
what it takes.

Nature Moves

Nature moves
one atom 
at a time
obeying 
unseen rules
until aware minds
chip hard stone
into pyramids
and cathedrals
as well 
saw trees
to meet their needs
chairs and tables
and match sticks 
to build
fire.