October 16, 2014 Poets United/ Trees -- Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads/ Zombies

Trees

yo ho he yo!                                                   sailing the vasty deep          

                                      i live in a sea                        of sage

low to the ground                trees               

when looking out                  surveying the scene

one could imagine                 what is seen               is a deep green sea

yo ho he yo!

few trees                                on the mesa            that stand above the sage

the wind blows                                                          every afternoon

it blows                                   through the sage

                                                           

one of the few plants                                               that thrive in the desert

yo ho he yo!

perfect trees                           for the tiny people               of Lilliput

Note:  ‘The vasty deep,’ Shakespeare.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Zombies

so little to be              said...

zombies are                                       unknown to me

i’ve never seen          one                  hope i never do

don’t even like                     pretend

don’t see movies                   about zombies

i don’t like to be                    frightened

life is scary                             enough                       pot holes and booby traps

lay in wait     

for the unaware

i like to think I walk              a sunny path             even though I know

                                                                                                it isn’t true

           

instead a roller coaster                     i ride               sometimes up

                                                                                                often down

i remain                                  on guard

October 16, 2014

           

October 14, 2014 Magpie Tales/ The Blue Jay

The Blue Jay

the mirror reflected the                                                     scene

all was quiet in the                                                               in the studio

suddenly                                a loud crash

i went to the window                                                there you lay

dressed                                              in blue

of                                             the jay family

i could see                                          you breath                 the beat of your heart

kick your legs                                                 move your tail

you were joined by               two                               companions

perched on the back of the chair                                        they talked to you

pleaded for you to get up                                                    then dropped down beside you 

                                        

walked around you with concern    still pleading

get up get up

i grabbed a towel 

                                                                                    i cushioned you there

placed you out of the sun

i couldn’t help but watch                                                     hopeful you would be ok

at last you hobbled away                                         left the courtyard

now you have                                                                        gone away

the courtyard                                     is empty….

i wonder                                 did you live through the night        or where the injuries too great                                                      

wild things                             have few choices                                                                   get better or

 die

October 14, 2014

October 14, 2014 Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads/The Return of Spring

The Return of Spring

i want to think                                                           it was OK

                                                            you died that day

just a few days                                                          after the mr toad’s wild ride

                                                            the crazy ambulance driver

i wonder                                                                     was it a job no one else would have

summer had just begun                                           honeysuckle in the air

still a boy                                            in jeans           with tousled hair

my one and only                   Son                              you were

now I wear                             a lock of your hair     in a locket of blue

                                                                                                in the form of a robin’s egg

i touch it often                                                           with my fingertips

i think of you                                                             your spirit lingers here

with the birds                                                who come to feed

                                                eat the seed               express their anger

                                                                                                they have to share

in my mind                i wonder                     through the town                  where you lived

so far from home                                                      you settled down

became a man                                                                       your father would have be so proud

i hold a space                                                             all in white

it is for you                                                                 in tower cracked

over time                                                                    repairs are made

the warmth of                       spring                         will return

October 12, 2014

October 13, 2014 Poetry Pantry #222/ What Do Women and Young Back Men Have in Common

What Do Women and Young Black Men Have in Common

as a woman                            we know                                 how to dress

                                                                                                what to wear

                                                don’t go out alone                 after dark

our actions                             matter                                   

we are the prey

we are hunted                       everyday

she made me do it

she wanted it

she has a smart mouth

look how she dressed

now it is true                                     for young black men          too

maybe it always                    was

the rules are the                   same                                                                                                              

they have a quota                             it seems                      fill the prisons

throw down the                    weed               hell                  just shoot them in the street

keep them in                                     line                                          they get uppity

                                                  otherwise

October 13, 2014

Note:  They pass new laws everyday, to keep women down, in their place.   Your Mother told you, keep quiet, keep your head down, don't draw attention to yourself, be careful how you dress, don't go out alone, especially at night….I think black Mother's tell their sons the same thing.  It seems everyday, we read of police killing young black men, for no reason at all….they are so afraid, those lilly livered white police officers.  They have to do it, they have to keep the peace.