return after years
only the street corner
in the same place
Category: Issue 07
skipping stones-
the stuttered marriage
proposal
the pull of the waves
back thru the sound
of the stones
queue for darshan–
she mumbles her prayers
at a roadside puddle
lotus pond–
a frog sleeps
on the moon
stonehenge —
the sunrise measured
in pixels
midsummer dusk
the splat
of a water balloon
pioneer museum
the comfort of quilts
made by men
front porch dusk
he whittles
the silence
Father’s Day —
hunting in the diaper bag
for his cell phone
breakfast —
a slice of sunlight
on a clean plate.
Joshua Tree
points toward the promised land
with every branch
war news
I wash the ink
from my fingers
shimmering grass
the silhouette of an egret
sidewalk shadows
the bee between sunlight and the daisy
crackling beach fire–
we hum in place of words
we can’t recall
last rays
of the red sunset —
maize roaster’s fire
power outage
we drink another pint
of ice cream
running of the bulls
the stoplight flashes
yellow
beyond
the electric fan
crickets
telephone call
the weather and I
in meltdown
in mid-air
his coin catches
the last sunbeam
his brother’s new bike–
looking down
at his tricycle
hands stained
with tiger lilies
all day this heat
three-month drought —
the clouds fading
on the street mural
a butterfly
the slightest breeze
in this heat
dawn
his breath
on my shoulder
Overcast summer morning
the tulips
open with the sky
her eyes on mine
just long enough
this evening heat
moving across
the sagebrush field
cloud shadows
scattered stars–
the mist between us
tastes of pine
funeral procession
moths drawn
to the headlights
night sky
a swimmer passes
under the bridge
after the sound
of wind in the plum tree
a plum
herbal massage-
I inhale the warm breath
she exhales
a parking lot
a maple stump blooms
in the far corner
carp feeding–
the stars shiver
but escape
library cafe –
we swap lost key stories
as my coffee cools
night drive
with the top down
cicada moon
summer storm . . .
the warm spot where
the dental nurse leans
summer moonlight
the potter’s wheel
slows
veiled moon –
the clouds monopolize
all your light
diving Grebe
the glint floats on the water
bright breeze
a sighted person fingers
the statue’s eyes
Hiroshima Day
in the friendship garden
flashes of koi
orange dragonfly
over the koi pond
Hiroshima Day
mannequin faces
a cosmetic counter woman
offers a spritz
garden web
a butterfly clings
to the scarecrow’s lapel
the child halts
in the shade of the old elm
dripping ice pop
moonlight
on the rocky side
of an oyster shell
green thumb
an hour of
podding peas
summer showers
folding and unfolding
the umbrella
august wind
a sparrow re-rights itself
at the peanut cage
bare walls –
even my own voice
sounds strange
first kiss-
his stuttering lips
upon her nose
relaxing my arm
butterfly
on the bullseye
heat wave!
the chapel in the snow
screensaver
old attic
along the sunbeam
straight to the sky
open window
call of the owl
in my dream
morning fog
a midwife wipes the eyes
of a newborn
family picnic
the new wife’s rump
bigger than mine
mountain lake
the night air fills the loon’s call
summer grasses
a man from Georgia
tells his dream
lunar eclipse
i fall for
the hidden ball trick
summer moon
so full
the oncoming headlights
night tide
the attic in its mirror
between stars
and lightning bugs,
a quiet conversation
harvest moon
a north wind
rattles the wheat
moonset
sucking the coolness
from an apricot
Trinity Churchyard
worms in the flesh of a crabapple
lingering summer . . .
the laughter of neighbor kids
between each fence slat
lingering heat the cricket pauses as my shadow passes
center field
nothing but
three-leafed clover
moonrise…
geese argue
with their shadows
street fair
smell of patchouli
on the price tag
yard sale —
the old lady keeps
her money in her bosom
the visible pulse
of a baby’s soft spot . . .
wren answering wren
a stone, a leaf…
the quiet closing
of a door
ocean sundown–
a child jumping up
for one last look
broken clock
a bark beetle ticks
in the wooden case
a frown
drawn on the kool-aid pitcher…
summer’s end
autumn night
the smell of summer in a broken twig
open skylight
releasing a moth
into the fog
fall plumage
freshly painted decoys
dry on the lawn
pierced by the radio tower on Signal Hill the back-to-school moon
thistledown
caught in a spider web . . .
first day of school
sad news from home–
my student takes the chalk
and draws me Africa
thunderstorm ~
a dragonfly rests on
my night table
autumn rain
the politician poses
with a shovelful of mud
falling down
onto rush hour traffic
seagull feathers
the itch
in your absence
poison oak
sunset
in the Painted Desert
all new colors
sundial –
a lizard advances
the time
at the dead tip
of a River Red Gum
an eagle’s nest
sleepless night …
in the dirty tram window
a bouncing moon
roadside bison
the cowboy aims
his digital camera
holding a moth
in your cupped hands
moonrise
stadium lights
treetops sway
in wind and mist
sputnik satellite
a solar flare picks out
a rivet
another birthday
the same rustle
of falling leaves
cleaning my rifle–
my dog’s ears
uplifted
reflecting pond
the blind child
tosses a stone
honey flowing
from the spoon
autumn sunset
autumn’s chill
a cat whines
to the sickle moon
reading –
a silverfish grazing on
page 38
alien sighting
my brother palms
a cicada skin
autumn chill
the earth’s shadow moves
up the chimney
bright autumn sun –
the empty hammock
fades just a bit more
high above
the homecoming parade
migrating geese
running downhill
I fall through
the autumn sky
skipping that lecture
on metaphor in haiku
Indian summer
at dusk
the autumn wind behind
closed windows
harvest moon
our newborn’s cry floats above
the cornstubble
reflection pond-
autumn color and koi
collide
hunter’s moon —
the tension at the end
of the dog’s leash
October night
dead leaves rush towards me
October snowfall
water beads on the oil spots
where she used to park
low clouds
her Halloween bag
drags on the ground
autumn twilight …
swan shapes separate
for the lone boatman
the x’s missing
from above her signature…
autumn rain