We sat through sixth-grade classes, we sat at lunch side by side, Laughing through the hallways, taking life in stride. Then came the quiet day you had to say goodbye, And years went rushing past as time was flying by.
Now high school's finally here, the halls are huge and new, And nothing feels as bright as being back with you. Two freshmen starting over, right where we left off, With every inside joke and every shared-in laugh.
You’ve always been the sweetest, a anchor in the storm, And now a brand-new chapter is starting to take form. With a baby on the way, a little light to guide, I know you'll be amazing with that sweet heart inside.
Just yesterday you handed me a gift I’ll keep in mind, My very first real phone, the best I’d ever find. It’s got a couple scuffs, a little beaten and worn, But to me it is a treasure from the day that it was born.
I’ve never had one of my own to text or scroll or call, And having it from you makes it the greatest thing of all. Through every shift and change, no matter where we roam, Having a friend like Avery always feels like coming home.
[ Poet’s Note : Companion Poem to
attenuate: Aug 26 ]
her gracile cancer ridden body disturbed soul shores, re-assimilating into ether
simultaneously
embodied light attenuated as rain sleets soaked washing trauma embedded
molecules —
shattered dreams attenuated floorboards, oregons shivering sunlight through colourful veils
meanwhile
gracile human pendants attenuated threads of Leo’s mane, gently swaying in cool breeze
…
grey matter spilled into hot black and white hands
healing —
blue veins attenuated
their hair one corn, one wavy
lips grim thick and thin
clothed in hospital tunics
spaceship hovered silver sleek
cancer attenuated —
Dainty and seasick,
she is renewing
fanatical meditation
through increasing
tenaciousness.
We sat at the edge of the river for an hour
Holding our spot with a flimsy blanket
Some bought pillows, children were sleeping
Though strangers, we nodded to each other
On fireworks day, we are all united, all friends
The ship was as beautiful as I had imagined
Moreso, if I am to be honest, with red lights
A clipper ship with red lights, I was entranced
The crowd appeared to be mesmerized
I looked at my new neighbor to the left; he looked thunderstruck
We did not meet each other’s eyes; we were in love
In love with a clipper ship whose sails were blood red
The night went from magical to mystical
A loud streaming screaming something went up behind the ship
Pop Pop Pop Pop Pop Pink fireworks exploded behind the red sails
And I had thought the night could not have been more ethereal
I've seen a ship in a bottle
and a barque inside a jar
how they got there I've no idea
perhaps a retractable spar
mariners made them
when all at sea
or in the doldrums
averting voyage-long ennui
what it signifies I know not
but there's a punt
in the bottom of mine
maybe an impediment
to catch sediment
when storing
or accommodate
a thumb for pouring
yet it does not improve the wine
Majestically, she minds the masts
on a million misty mornings,
unfurling her sealskin sails
against a pearl-glass dawning;
impeccably, ivory light illumines,
shimmering softly on silver waves.
She holds her position proudly;
sails, pale petals upon the spars,
unfold in porcelain splendor.
Her gaffs and yards, bright shafts of light
banish darkness before her,
a single white rose sea rising.
Copyright, July 10, 2026
(“Enemy of the State Merit Badge”, 2011, original oil)
- Ship of fools, on a cruel sea
Ship of fools, sail away from me
It was later than I thought
When I first believed you
Now I cannot share your laughter
Ship of fools -
Tide so high, the fleet just sails on in
Like at the beach of Normandy
Only now it’s no liberating force
But a farce of laughing mothers
Coming to claim what we now value
So cheaply as to have no worth at all
Wave after wave they come
Laughing all the way
No care for customs, no care for culture
Just here for the hand out
A little anchor in the storm
The storm that rages the whole world round
Let me into your homes
Let me into your schools
Let me into your halls of power
Because they are all mine now too
The whole world together, united
In this ship of fools.
(7/1/26)
TUCK LEAVES GOP
THE PARTY DESERTED ME
SAME SAYS MARJORIE
I was lost, but now I'm Found
just a Ghost Ship drifting Unbound,
through Storms and Flame, through nights and days
wayfaring through in Most Excellent Haste,
through darkened mist, Into Seas of Light Cyphers
I Am Solar Rexus with the Solar Light Piper,
the Soul Vessel, it Gleams Immaculate
Deep Diving the Inner Galactics,
Venturing Afar
for the Spark within burns like Djeds and Stars,
Wielding Torches, Illumined to Navigate
Unto the High Seas and Gales,
Unto the Celestials, it's Exuberant
Crista Insignis, I Harken to Boundless Lumens
Ever So-Lucid, To Believe is To Become
Resist Not, those Typhonic Winds Into The Sun
An early ship that set out to steer,
Not too far, not too near.
Stuck in the between, amidst the fear,
Battling those waves striking with shear.
Never too late to turn back and leave,
With the skies all dark and plainly heave.
But that ship - too firm to grieve,
Waiting for the waves to slowly cleave.
The waves calmed down in pastels of blues,
Drifting away those dark coastal hues.
Paving the way while leaving some clues,
For that ship to sail and find its muse.
I can’t abandon ship because
The watchers of the show
Won’t let me in - their gates are closed
So there’s no way to go
Among the horde of savages
I’m of no face and name
Appointed to cause damages
To fit the guessing game
How soon I’ll sink in agony
They’d raise their glasses high
To cheer me up, before I flee
Out of their world to mine.
I don’t mean to sound selfish
But I often wonder if my name floats through your conversations
Like a ship on calm waters
The stench of freedom gone,
Trapped in a cage on water,
Chained to mirrors of their own fate,
Condemned to a slow death - with their own neighbours
Slowly roasting in a human sized oven,
Contrasting to the cold waters beneath -
A new home for those who choose to rest in peace
Trapped like sardines packed in a can,
No hope, no oxygen, no way out,
Bodies become one,
As their flesh seek help,
As their blood leaks out,
Their mouths a drought,
Voices caught by deathly sounds,
Echoes of whips travel around,
A warning - a preview of what is to come when they reach land
My jib flying free,
sometimes I follow faded
stars to a pale fate.
Oh but did you know
Or did you ever believe
All the faith i put in you
Was also into you and me?
If I know you like I think I do
Then, well, perhaps you did
But after all yiu put me through
Are you surprised at how I acted?
Always tried to do you right
But somehow I was wrong
I didn’t even try to fight
Cuz my feelings are still strong
I hope you know
I didn’t want to go
But for the sake of my own mind
And maybe also for my heart
I had to leave my love behind
And it’s tearing me apart
I’m a mess as it stands
Torn down into shambles
No longer picking pieces up
I’ll leave them in the brambles
I’ll build new pieces, shape them up
Replace the once I lost
Much like the ship of Theseus
Is it still me?
Was this the cost?
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