5.13.2015
they locked us in
for the first two
weeks
then out into the
big yard
for first.
stand in the group
don’t be alone,
until
the one on my left
reaches to
stab
the one on my right
downing
me
and the catwalk
guard shoots
him.
with a dead man
on either side
of me,
let me out now
and I will
never
do another bad
thing again
in my whole
life.
—————————–
**San Quentin prison 1966
———————-
5.10.2015
thirty foot drop to
the southernmost
point of land’s
ocean
terror rides on her
face. it seemed like
the thing to do,
an adventure
until there and the
reward risk ratio
pales. harsh rock
faces, waves,
next land point south
Antarctica. no lifeline
buoys, warning signs,
help.
an adventurer is
the person who
knows when
it is time
to come back out
of the cave.
the other guy
is called
a dead guy.
she turns and walks
away.
we tell her,
good choice.
——————-
** South Point, Ka Lae, Hawaii
——————–
5.9.2015
the walls shake us
awake 4.5 in the
night
while the lava pool
rises at Kilauea
crater.
Pele is
shrugging
her shoulders.
—————
5.8.2015
little towheaded boys
play ball in bare
feet
little brother with a
good pitch, older
with a nice swing
running through grass
in their backyard.
I think we used to
do that before we
decided that only
buses could get
us to school
and only school
could let us play
on pre-selected safe
secured non-gmo
materials approved
by OSHA or
somesuch
as if parents wouldn’t
know enough to
care for their own
without a lawyer
by their side or in
their face.
little boys in bare
feet running, laughing,
in their own grass yard.
what do they know?
—————–
5.6.2015 [Akaka Falls]
knees buckle, arms
quake, head ducks in
terror at nature’s
height
primate, primitive
instinct pulls one
lower to ground,
feet splayed
head hunched,
arms akimbo, hands
clenching whatever is
graspable, the eyes
barely able to raise
as if the god will strike,
pull, demand,
death.
chemistry from some
earlier replication
dormant yet present for eons
now invokes.
we have not risen far
from the terrors of
our being.
——————–
the fear of the Lord
is the beginning
of wisdom.
———————
5.5.2015 [wishes]
to shut off the jangle
jangle
of telly, podcast, radiola
voices of now instant
anxiety
and listen to the silence,
a bird, wind, steps
of a loved one,
and the sigh (the soft sigh)
of a heart.
—————————
5.1.2015 [Aline Alone]
I like my ironing board
I like my washing machine
a dead voice, blond curls
close to her head
in the basement
room
where she slammed
the basket down
catatonic stare, blank
eyes wondering
why she
hates
so much
the life she is living.
—————————
4.30.2015 [force majeure]
cat lies in the center
of the room
that we get to
wander by and into
but only if
we don’t thump
too loudly.
——————
4.29.2015 [night boxer]
weariness has taken
on a new name
I don’t know what
it is
I just know the pull
down
weight, sound,
touch
of its ringing
bell
and my failing
fight.
————————–
PoemsPerDay 