The Church Bells
I miss the bygone bells, The bronze deep-throated Sunday thrum That synced with the vibrations of my heart And called me out of time. O hark. The weekday Angelus, in sounding noontime pause, Pressed gently on the reset button Of…
Whimsical Belated Couplets for My 50-Year Valentine
If true love had worn braces There’d be a lot more smiling faces. For every Barbie there’s a Ken, For perfect breasts there’s easy men. The overbite that marred my grin Was proof against a facile win. But I found…
Four Blessings
In a soul winter’s night emerges desire (When bleakness is steeped in the dark) For the warmth of a heart to kindle a fire Of caring, if only a spark. Four prayers, four blessings I ask To brighten an inner…
2023
Think about it. For 364 days Each one begins a new year That has no number. With each dawn I hope That I will act A bit more wisely today Than I did in the yesterday now gone. The days…
Road Trip West
Behind a CR-V on I-80: Denver still lies ahead. My eardrums hum with John Denver And I sing along with Phil, Filled with memories, Life entwined with life. The prairie sails by. Phil is an earthbound sailor At the wheel…
And Suddenly It Was Quiet
What a holiday visit it was In COVID’s shadow When son, grandsons, daughter Spilled their unmasked energy and laughter All over our condo. It was so gonzo. A winter’s night walk Sprinkled twinkling pied lights Of neighbors’ Christmas elves All…
Breakthrough Affection
In these COVID days They call it breakthrough infection. Ah, a dark way to open a poem. But wait. As if emerging, Emerging from a deep retreat, I find a better breakthrough The color of air, and no mirage. I…
Hugs
Ten hugs for breakfast, Eleven with lunch, Twelve hugs for supper, A dozen per bunch. Hugs that are scrambled, Hugs on a bun, Hugs in the ice cream With sprinkles for fun. Hugs in my salad, A mug full of…
Souls
What oceans hold and anthems know Is mirrored in a river’s flow. The raindrop not absorbed by earth, Hovering on the brim of birth, Meanders slowly toward the sea and Yearns for holy unity. Then By strange grace the droplet…
There is a Place
There is a place In the southwest corner of the soul That wants to be given Away. Or maybe to be Laid out on a mesa For bone-picking? No, No. It wants tenancy In someone else’s pueblo Whose kiva receives…
