I came to Cincinnati when I was ten with my sister and my daddy and my mama’s best friend We’d left Lafayette on a midnight moon Mama was a waitress, worked till noon. I silently died in the back of the car Sister cried quietly in my arms We hid under covers ‘neath a midnight … Read More
I Was a Pilgrim Oft I’ve wondered out under the sky (OK, “oft” is a number not that high Too much pollution no planetarium close And too much abuse of my ambien dose) But here’s what I’d wonder if I stayed up late: Is it nature or nurture that parlays our fate? Physics might surely … Read More
THE LONELY HAT It was seven in the morning, seven below I was livin’ in a little town in Ohio I was walkin’ my dog, his name was Joe When we saw a curiosity in the snow It was a lonely hat, blue and black Dirty but furry with floppy earflaps I picked it up, … Read More
Peter Fonda 1940-2019 Peter Fonda’s first movie was breezy with sweet Sandra DeeThen for a ride to The Big Easy you can’t beat LSDHe finally stepped from the shadows of that family tree“We can only learn when we are free.” Fonda was once shot in the stomach, “a mishap” he saidBy his own hand he’d … Read More
Voted most likely To fall just short of his goal at Haiku High Still he showed promise Harvard Haiku took a chance It got worse Studied in Japan Zen Monastery Master still worse The harder he tried The more it all receded Still He would not give up Wanting more becoming less Psychotherapy Mother … Read More
The Poetry Police The Poetry Police paid a visit last night Drop the pen and nobody gets hurt! They only come when I put out the light There’s no need for handcuffs! They’re too tight! They said they’d received an alert The Poetry Police paid a visit last night One thing is clear: they’re not … Read More
Poetry in Pie This is what nature teaches: Time drifts quickly by But for today we feast on peaches There is poetry in pie Last year brought unwelcome weather Peaches in short supply Which made their juices so much better There is poetry in pie It could be a metered sonnet A haiku or just … Read More
Day upon day the rain gray not easingRoads submerged sheep, pigs and cattle were drownedThe river claimed where wheat once ruled the groundWe watched the water our hearts were freezingAscend the cellar stairs air decreasingWind on the walls, rage on the roof that soundSaid you’re going down dark never be foundI blessed myself knelt and … Read More