Like Tiny Kittens
I pick up some words
with love, like tiny kittens
as they writhe around
I follow their moves
and hug them to settle down
coaxing them to stay
onto a new page
hoping they will start purring
having found a home
I pick up some words
with love, like tiny kittens
as they writhe around
I follow their moves
and hug them to settle down
coaxing them to stay
onto a new page
hoping they will start purring
having found a home
we were shown
our value
was measured in blood
spilled out during
the sweltering heat
that makes us worth
nothing
when the day’s over
a tool discarded
until tomorrow’s doing
not in complaining
because that didn’t
make anyone happy
and showed weakness
the greatest sin
for blue-collar over
sunburned necks
movies tell us
that we’re not
to go out quietly
told to idolize
last stands
surrounded by the enemy
for distant ideas
honor
tradition
respect
society made sure
that a father and son
only knew each other
through languages
of violence, hard work, or death
we’ve got to sit in rooms
knowing our sins
created by our forefathers
perpetuated
to now
ancient toxic bonds
killing all of our
already tired and ragged souls
in rooms our fathers would not
let them break us apart
with the determination to change
so we can finally speak
as equals
instead of finding our end
sitting in a work truck
smelling of beer and sweat
in an empty parking lot
with a gun in our mouths
because we’ve been told
it’s better to take our own lives
when things get too bad
it’s what heroes do
Soaked in grace
along the banks of rivers and creeks
across the clouds circulating the skies at dawn
creating a waterspout above the shore
dripping mist over verdant mountains
rich in earth scent, lush in meaning
that washes over you as you bend
to plant seeds in thickets and fence rows,
as you stretch to pick fresh fruit.
Peace echoes the floral blooms of each season
within reach of those that grasp
climb uphill
swim across raging waters
run through strawberry fields
dance in the shadow of the moon
gallop on horses
listen to the song of the purple martin
hum along with trumpets of angels.
My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel,
which can sometimes mean Borrowed from God.
In Alexandria, Kentucky;
at Main Street Baptist Church;
in the women’s restroom;
in the sink, in fact;
she baptized me in the name of the Creator, and of the Christ, and of the Spirit.
My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel,
which can sometimes mean Sent by God.
She wanted me for herself,
hadn’t wanted to birth me, if it meant sharing me.
Not her choice to make in the end,
but in the end, she chose to share,
if that was the only way to have me at all.
My mother prayed for me
and when I came she called me Samuel
which can sometimes mean Name of God.
The healer who pulled me from my mother
(I was already too large to leave on my own)
called me tall, called me handsome, called me white:
No excuse, he told the room, for me to fall, to fail.
The room nodded their agreement.
God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I said, It is I, Lord.
God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I asked, Do I have to, Lord.
God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I asked, Why me, Lord.
God called for me
and when I came God called me Samuel
and I said, No thank you, Lord.
God called for me
and when I did not come
God called again.
A conglomerate of atheists
are looking for meaning
in ladybugs crawling on the backs of
hands;
their legs tickling the
hairs at the base of withered wrists
to remind us they’re here
and they say (or maybe it’s us)
we lack spirituality
but tell me how my grandmother
visited me twelve separate times
since we buried her in June
the feeling of turning a coin over
in my hand, head to tail, until that sharp
scent of metal rubs off on my skin.
the five o’ clock alarm that never properly rung,
and after having resolved that June first would be productive,
lying in bed until twelve forty five.
mauling over what to make my first entry
for months and months and months
and deciding that certainty is overrated anyway.
the blinds have not been properly drawn open,
nor have the towels all been collected for washing.
maybe i’ll do it today, who knows.
Right leg caught
in a fashion disaster.
Putting on a full show for the passengers.
I missed the bus.
Howling like a wolf.
My cast comes off
in four to six weeks.
How it feels
when both parents are gone
no matter how old you are.
No parent to call to tell about the cute thing
the grandkids did
or how smart and talented and big
they are.
No parent to rely on for comfort
when a scary health problem hits
or your best friend dies.
No wise patriarch
to ask advice
in the face of hard decisions.
Even in old age,
miss Mom and Dad
terribly.
We pave you over
without thought, squeeze
breath and water from you
rip you open recklessly
poison you, cut you,
clear you, use you
We pray to distant heavens
while our existence
is owed to you,
invisible you, underfoot
our faithful servant
until drought
and monocultures
and heat spins you
into a gray wind-ghost
You are:
elemental galaxy
organic universe
root-veined
gravity-bound
unappreciated home
of plants, insects, arachnids,
moles, voles, worms,
fungi and microbes
a miracle
Your dark webbed empire
sustains all life, all riches;
without you,
a planet dirt-poor
May we fall to our knees
in love, in wonder,
may we learn to pray
to your grandeur before
it is too late.
Scat doesn’t lie.
The birds ate my blueberries.
My dog stole some carrots.
When unraveled, owl poop
reveals the mouse bones;
the structure of past nutrition
made strong in the night sky.
Neither do poems.
There are entire months where
I sift, sniff, massage, weigh,
and reassemble the bones of other people’s poetry.
What they ate. How they change.
Tracking their traces,
holding them up to the light
to see what shadows get reflected on the wall.
Mini-maps of entropy, intent,
and just possibly a way forward.
