Soul on Fire

Was it funny
that he put
a smile on his face
when his soul
was on fire
for want
of a better
term?

Ode to a Leaf

I couldn't see the forest
for the trees
and couldn't see the trees
for the leaves
and couldn't see the leaves
for the cells
and couldn't see the cells
for the cytoplasm
and couldn't see the cytoplasm
for the forest
that I held in my hand
that I called
a leaf
that was filled
with more wonder
than my mind
knew how to
grasp.

The Ruse

No thing
seems at times
like nothing
but that's the ruse
because behind
all the aught
is everything
under the sun
with thoughts
that go beyond
the stars
with memories
sprinkled in
just for delight.

The River Was No More

It was a day like no other
day in the long string
of countless days
that faded all the way back
in my memory
until there was nothing
but jumbled glimpses
of reconstructed minutes
when everything was new
and now all that gone
yet the future was here
unpredictable pieces
constructed
inside my head
but to cross the river
just once
into the future I walked
to the other side
where it was all so familiar
to my surprise
then I turned around
and the river was
no more.

Chet's Porch

I think 
it was a
break of drawn
moment
when in the distance
I heard voices
of every kind
speaking of wonder
and reality
all matter in between
some words 
crystal clear
while others 
wrapped in mystery
before I knew it
darkness approached 
but I returned
the next day
and approached
the porch again
this time a chair was bare
and no one seemed to care
when I sat
and made myself
at home
and daily I returned
others came and went
yet no matter
how early I arrived
I could never catch a glimpse
of the owner of the porch
but always there
his words
as though they were 
the nails 
the sawn and planed timber planks 
that is what
we call 
the porch.

Suddenly Brave

Before the storm
lightning and thunder
rain that stung
my face
we laughed before
the gathering dark clouds
on the narrow trail
faster our pace
down and around
the tall redwoods
and boulders 
we scampered over 
as the first drops
urged us on
when suddenly the dark
of the forest 
awoke our primal instincts
to blinding light
then a boom that
sent us running
across the high meadow
no time to dwell
upon alpine beauty
poured the rain 
but now safe 
inside the Volkswagen
we burst into laughter
soaked and cold
yet now
all of a sudden
brave.

God = x

I blink
in the dark
overhead
bejeweled sky
I tease the universe
and find
potential came first
and all that matters
then came forth
to be
you and I
to wonder
why.

Like TIme

To the seashore
again
this time the lapping surf
catches me with ease
no longer can I taunt
the sea
outrun its endless dare
like time it is
always there
for me to measure
and be aware
just how much longer
I need
to care.

The Blue Jay Feather

The blue jay feather
was the bookmark
about the halfway point
in Moby Dick
and the Volkswagen van
pulled into the camp space
surrounded by redwood trees
a stream nearby
provided the music
and she began
preparing lunch
and he began exploring
the campsite as only
five-year-old boys do
and I retreated
to camp table and bench
and opened to
the blue jay feather
and all about us
the sunlight streamed
in long shafts
down from the tall trees
confirming to me
this was the spot
to be
for we three
and nothing else
counted.

Old Men with White Hair

Old men with white hair
blown in the wind
when each step
is considered
with care
and no more
thoughtlessly
moving about
with matters
in their head
of consequence
to none
now all those thoughts
faded and threadbare
awaiting a pause
a chair
then time to dwell
on memories
of thoughts
of consequence
to none.

Painting and Printing

A matter
of an 'a'
for an 'r'
and the difference?
Printing
when we paint words
not for eyes alone
but for minds
to translate
into invisible images
inside darken skulls
where eyes
think they see.

Making Sense

Making sense
of a world
a universe
without a thought
but for yours
and mine
the starry night
and atoms
dancing their dance
without a thought
neither rhyme nor reason
except for yours
and mine
we sense
what we can
and construct
what we can
and think we know
what we can
and bite apples
and chew facts
and call it
knowledge.

Creating Memories

Once
I remember
creating memories
out of thin air
one by one
each more amazing
than the other
then summer
came to an end
and school filled
my mind with facts
that crowded my memories
until this day
when I sit
under the shade
of a cottonwood tree
and remember
amazing things
that refused
to flee.

The Plums

The plums
were dark purple
under the summer sun
I reached up
big and round and firm
I picked a basket full
after I bit into one
and juicy and sweet
it was
the basket rested
by the window
in the kitchen
and after I had my fill
the remainder
slowly dried
and it was late July
when I rediscovered
my harvest
now shriveled prunes
and to my delight
even sweeter
than before
as I opened
the back door
holding the basket
and spitting the pits
onto the bed
of white roses.

Constructing Reality

Another daybreak
the world awakes
to my open eyes
blinking 
as if chewing 
bits of reality
my eyes feed 
my still sleepy mind
as my imagination
hurries to make
the world
real.

Is and Is Not

The unthinkable
What is it
that is not?
That is
and forever is
yet is not?
For all our thinking
is not enough
to make
what is not
to become
what is.

Reverse Engineering a Universe

The universe / oh so slowly / re-created
in words / of countless / souls
and even now / that journey / just begun
until that day / when all / will fit
inside / just / a single one.

Dreamland

Dawn splits heaven from earth
this morning
and I roll over
my eyes close again
as my mind settles
beneath a cottonwood
tree
leaves quaking
in the breeze
as I lay below
and watch
with hands behind head
blue sky beyond
and I blink
the heavens overhead
filled with stars
in the black night
and I awake again
with thoughts
of eggs and bacon
sputtering
over a break of day
camp fire.

Known and Unknown

The Emperor Moth
took flight at night
beneath a starry sky
to where it went
he never knew
but as for the sun
and the moon
he knew
when and where
because
his Farmer's Almanac
told him so.

Argyle Socks

How many years
did legs and knees
and feet
take to evolve
into confident
steps
to stride across
continents
floating mountains
plains and deserts
atop molten rock
only to walk daily
to and fro
the parking lot
legs hidden
beneath desks
to spend the days
toes wiggling
trying to escape
the darkness
inside argyle
socks.