A playful toddler- made to sit
when it's time to eat
may then assume that inborn fit-
to wiggle, squirm right off his seat!
Only last night they came again—
those pale, insistent travelers of sleep,
moving through the corridors of my mind
as softly as breath on glass.
I had never walked in Italy before,
neither by sun nor by moon,
yet there it rose before me—
blue skies opened like silk above stone,
and the hills lay bare of trees,
gold and waiting like an ancient promise.
She was there among them,
laughing as if time had no meaning,
her hands shaping the air itself,
lifting and lowering the moment
until my heart spilled out its wonder, upward
and I vanished into light.
They raced one another across the fields,
ghosts and girls and flickers of desire,
while I stood rooted in the dream,
aching with the sweetness of it,
unable to follow the succubus
unable to wake from such a wicked dream.
And when morning finally found me spent,
their footsteps still rang in my head —
proof that even where we have never lived before ,
can still haunt us,
and even what we have never touched,
still intensely touches us
It still can haunt me like that memory and.
Get away,
a fuel for emotion,
commotion of the Louvre
lifted from its demure, cinematic complacency;
someone plays the fool, the jester, wearing a crown
that doesn’t belong on the pumpkin’s head.
Get away;
chasing the bag of bones mutt down the street,
offering him nothing but your feet; to be gotten
is all the fleabag wants; cool water and chow.
Lies down, paw on vagrant’s thigh, licks empty hand.
A getaway we much prefer, a mountain retreat,
the pink rose and plumes of smoke at the peak,
a rustic cabin with couple-amenities, serenity,
closeness, places to go, to play, to eat, to spend.
Get away - a cataclysm, a gotcha, a zone.
A mixed bag of razors and diamond candy.
The Louvre, my love closed. A tourist trapped.
(Cabin Sunset, summer 2025)
The Heat of the Moment
Settling into our new mountain cabin,
Dogs and humans equally overheated
In the shadeless August afternoon,
The only way to be is naked.
Stuff strewn around
Bed to one side, kitchen the other,
Camp chairs with panting dogs
On an old Persian rug in-between.
Cabin with unfinished interior
Waits for insulation, paneling and flooring,
But in this moment nothing is missing
Except maybe a fan.
No water we haven’t brought,
Nor power not in some kind of rechargeable battery,
Yet we find a strong signal FM station
Playing one classic rock song after another.
And it takes me back to another time
Living as a 70’s teen in the suburbs when FM was king,
Then in the 80’s as a young man off grid in the hills
When a stack of cassettes was all we had or wanted.
Those youthful times, family and friends are long gone
And yet here I am in old age,
Living the good life again with new family and friends
Still rocking on, out of time, out mind.
(8/10/25)
white bunnies are funny
tails puffy and fluffy
I see bear with thick honey
now he is getting huffy
will he see the bunny?
He sets down the honey
I watch the rabbit try to hop away
will he live another day?
Rodents are incredibly funny
she has an ethereal ambiance
not of this earth, the pirates say
this does not keep them from staring
she is a gorgeous wench,
worth the trouble she might bring
get away from the bow, the captain warns
she is a siren, dangerous, not of this earth
she can do damage you will not quickly see
with that golden hair and that luscious body
the men ignore him, thinking he is crazy.
She is a beauty! Smitty argues.
We have not seen a woman for a long time
Not a pretty one! Some of the other men agree
The captain pushes Smitty into the water
a shark gobbles him up right away
What did I tell you? He says to the others
They finally get away from the bow.
when she left her house she was running
not as fast as a cougar, but swift for a two-legged
she wanted to get away and think
in order to do that, she had to leave the electronics behind
her husband’s television sets were on twenty-four, seven.
There were eight of them.
prairie had an amazing wind today; you knew you were in Kansas.
she knew she needed to change her life
where would she go? when would she leave?
no time like today, right now, her heart said.
she felt refreshed, cleansed, appreciated by the wind.
she sat; her hair whipping around her like a weak spider’s legs.
she began to plot
to plan
to scheme
to imagine
to visualize
but then she heard her baby’s cry
so she wandered back, into the land of the non-thinking.
A soulmate is hard to find but easy to love don't let them get away
no matter what race
you must face
what you did wrong
you do not belong
on top or bottom of the lot
this is a new day
you
CANT NOT GET AWAY
no matter what race
you must face
what you did wrong
you do not belong
on top or bottom of the lot
this is a new day
you
CANT NOT GET AWAY
Let's just go away someplace
And get away from here
Just you and I get on a plane
And let the pilots steer
We'll find out when we get there
Just where they steered us to
Enjoy this place called somewhere
Where nothing's what we have to do
We could simply sit and talk all day
And far into the night
We could share a clove, drink herbal tea
And all would be just right
And when we got too tired
When it was time to shut the light
We'd fall asleep in each other's arms
Your face my eye's last sight
let's create our own corner of heaven
where you and i will feel at home
away from noise and chaos
we'll sip wine and tell our stories
one-on-one in a secret cozy abode
AP: Honorable Mention 2023
Time collapses into one.
My heart keeps on pumping blood.
When the eyes of treacherous men break sight.
It's time to leave your life behind.
The more times I ponder this dismal existence
At most I wander around in my own head.
Now that times got my undivided attention.
And although I feel as though I should mention
It's past time to relieve unnecessary tension.
At times it's hard to forget.
Other times it's easier to live by day.
Sometimes I just know I'm in for a surprise.
Most of the time I just can't get away.
When I stand up alone in this world.
I tend to feel more pain.
And although I struggle to excel.
I sometimes want to just live in vain.
'There's a time and place' or so they say.
The time and place of my choosing.
When it's time, make haste and get out of my face.
This time I'm not the only one who's losing.
I want to get away
Unlock the door to my body
And step beyond it
I'm tired of being shackled by mortality
I'm like a fly buzzing near the window
Never knowing death is a breath away
I want to get away
I want to quit my job
And say bye to everyone
I'm tired of being a cog in the machine
I'm like a religious man who met God
But found out God was a fool
I want to get away
I want to get away from my past
And all of the memories inside
I'm tired of happy memories making me cry
I'm like a TV series that went on too long
Because my best seasons are behind me
I want to get away
From all of the things
That make me me
I'm tired of being me and would rather be someone else
I'm like a rotting piece of fruit
Because inside I'm not beautiful either
Please....
Just let me get away
it is drizzling outside
oak tree looks in window
gasoline lamp is not unlike a faerie light
cozy comforter made by grandma
plush pillows on couch
a philodendron hangs from the limb of the tree trunk
this tree house is my Shangri-La
My haven, a writer’s retreat
flickering candles give it an ethereal glow
My favorite biographies and adventure books
Waiting to be read in the rain
It is silent here, a reader’s alcove
There are flickering candles
I read my books, enjoying the ambiance
of my hideaway nook high in a cottonwood tree.
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