I cannot wait for the day,
years from now, that the last
molecule of spices we bought
together, has seasoned their final dish;
then I can scrape those stragling
remainders, off the plate
and into the trash.
Until then, I cannot afford
to throw those jars away.
Closed with a likeness on top,
I buried my father
under an herb that needed fertilizer
deep enough to do some good. Food. Food.
No military taps, no songs, no scripture.
God knew everything
she needed to know about that man.
The herb’s been healthy, vivid green
since.
Sun peeks between the blinds like an unwanted guest,
casting sword-like rays across the sleeping, entwined bodies.
A tornado of passion had blown through the room,
deep into the wee hours of the morning,
scattering clothes, shoes and secrets, haphazardly, around the room.
Eyelids begin to come to life,
lashes flutter like wet-winged butterflies,
taking flight for the first time.
Slowly, limbs begin their awkward, disentanglement,
memories of acrobatic shenanigans leave satisfied smiles.
Covering their new-found shyness and uncertainty,
they regard each other,
curious and consumed with questions,
where do we go from here?
Sore spots that linger just above my belly button
for far too long red brands and blisters popped
and turned a stiff and glossy bronze eventually
these will heal eventually the burn will fade
only with the faintest of outlines left in that tender
skin perhaps only visible to me but that will
certainly be enough having to recall this grease
and gluttony every time I dry myself after a shower
every time my shirt rides up as I reach for something
heavy over my head every time my wife runs her
fingers over my abdomen tracing my map of scars
You reminded me why I am scared
scared of police, jackets black, eyes cold
you joke, you think it’s all a game
You remined me that when people say
all lives matter all they are thinking about is themselves
That’s when they get defensive, when they say
something racsist they just care about themselves
they never are caring about anyone else
You reminded me that you don’t think of
me as anything but white
and that you don’t want to hear about
my passion which is social justice
You reminded me that we once were friends
Person 1 and Person 2 ride quietly in a car.
Person 1: Oooooo, shit!
Person 2: What?
Person 1: Nothing. Just thinking about my life.
Person 2: I know… Sometimes I drive and I say “Fuck!”, then lean back like that.
Person 1 and Person 2 fall silent,
without looking at each other
shake heads in agreement,
stare straight ahead.
Sleepless Sorrow
(The Haunting)
Every cell in this body cycles through
the grief, the pain and the unknowing–
continually, constantly, without caution and
it’s growing and itching,
turning every minute action on its axis,
twisting smiles around to frowns,
inside out, upside down,
and all this body wants to do with
this mind, this heart, this soul
is to find a way to put the puzzles away
so that it can sleep without nightmares
or dead bugs in this graying, thinning hair.
