At the end of the day

The cat and I

Sit in the waning sun

As spring seeks to wake

And winter becomes undone

She walks tip toe tentative

Through the dead dry leaves

Like a little bear waking from

Drowsy hibernation

And i watch

Taking in the musty scent

Rising from this thawing earth

He was addicted to the smell

Of gasoline poured over his head

And the feel of his flesh

As it burned unnecessarily

Again and again and again

As if be were Prometheus

Chaining himself to the rock

And waiting for the eagle to come

Riding an ocean of dead

In a leaky boat

The clouds are white cotton

Above our injured heads

And i imagine in the moment

That they are soaking up

Our bleeding in this time and place

Stopping up our hidden wounds

As we lay in the embracing grass

Waiting for the ever-present sun

To cauterize us in comfort

I was sitting in a train station

Somewhere in Germany

Not long after ww2

And two young women

Jewish girls though I don’t know

How i knew

Perhaps they were cousins

Long lost to time

They were enjoying a snack

Not far away

When a fat older man

Wandered over to them

And began to antagonize them

A politely as possible

“Have you been to Dachau before?

Of course you have of course

Its much better now than it was

The cars are more comfortable

Have you noticed”

I began to get up

To wander over

To make him stop

One way out another

When i woke up…

It was an odd dream.

In a phosphorescent flash

The world is captured

And frozen in stark white

And glaring yellow gold

The trees are glistening

And their carved bark is metal

Like burnished armour

Beneath the sherry-red sky

Standing guard against

The throaty howls

Of a coming jealous wind

That wants to tear us

From mother earth’s arms

And fling us into the storm

Where we might be broken

For our many countless sins

How many times

Has the switch been flipped

To raise your shields

In times of strife

And spaces

Of unwanted gazes

That roam over you

And through you

Stealing dignity

And it feels

Like robbery

And it feels

Like rape

So the shields stay up

But there’s a cost

To constant defense

A draining over time

That wears you down

It’s exhausting to be at war

Every moment

Of every day

Sometimes the best defense

Is a good offense

today there is work
but also grand-daughter
sounds of play pervade
in a space used to keyboard taps
and online meetings
filled with urgency

for at least this day
i can look up and see
a reason above and beyond
that chuckles on the periphery
oblivous to anxiety
and the pressures
of simply existing

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGH!

dude…you need to relax
you need to stop
o v e r – r e a c t i n g
to everything all of the time
you are like gasoline
poured on a firefly
just take a breath
all is well in the world
and so are you…

Stitch shut this mouth

That so freely lets loose

And pollutes the air

It erupts like a volcano

And burns down everything

That lays in its path

Salting the earth beneath it

Lay down beneath

A wet wool blanket

Soaked in warm water

Pressing you all around

And imagine this life is new

A world ready to receive you

Thrust into sharp cold relief

This is the way of things now