Words

words/letters

symbols on a string

obsessions of genius

possession of kings

complicated tools

manipulated by fools

everyday/every way

you and I 

all we can say

words

see them

hear them

read them 

write them

say them 

mean them

use them

abuse them

echoes sound softly

around in your head

modestly/proudly

once they are said

find them

say them

write them

play them

amuse them

abuse them

fuse them

use them

words/letters

symbols on a string

obsession of genius

possession of kings

complicated tools

manipulated by fools

echoes sound

alive in your head

once they are thought

and then they are said

find them

say them

write them

play them

use them

abuse them

amuse them

believe them

everyday every way

you and I

all we can say

…words….

Beads

beads

on leaf

blossom petal

and bloom

beads 

laced round 

the neck

of my lady love

beads in eyes

on thighs

lips and 

tip of nose

beads 

glistening on skin

running down the middle

of your back

beads

nestled in clefts

where passion came

and was spent

beads

on the cusp

of a tear

hovering on a sigh

beads gathered on

tear-stained window

casement and

onto floor

beads 

that remember

all that was 

and is no more

Her Flaxen Hair

water runs full free and fast

flowing down cliffs 

through meadow and marsh

carrying effluent on its back

time rules the hour

wheels turn winds blow

over fields of grain 

swaying like waves

rolling with the tide

and her flaxen hair streamed

like silk ribbons flowing

golden and fair as she rode

in the balmy summer air

she rode across meadows

stretched long and wide

like a dark messenger

on a mission to hell

she paused beside a soft sandy mound

that breathed a sigh 

and a message ushered forth

from deep within its depths

only she understood

then turned mounted her ride

and rode into the wind with abandon

her flaxen hair streaming 

like fine silk ribbons trailing behind

she never looked back

at what was left behind

she rode and her flamen hair

flowed full and free 

on the soft balmy breeze

riding by her side

The Silent Audience

you stammer and stumble
reading words that describe
azure skies drifting clouds
and an angled sun
tilted over a brilliant summer afternoon
while tree swallows
circle loop dip and dive
in dizzying arrays
and a little boy
chases his ball
around the yard
while you sit
amidst pastel blooms
singing arias to the golden sphere
suspended over an amber penumbra
aglow with the remains of the day
as the blind audience
smiles and nods
in silent agreement
to all they hear
but you know
light does not enter
the dark void
behind their eyes

The Road

if the road is willing
and the way
not too hard
we may meet
at the end
of the beginning
and start the journey again

Bud

out of a thatch
of brown furze
a stem arises
straight firm
erect and true
throbbing
seeking the caress
of a coddling sun
nestled in the cradle
of a new day

Baseball

they made it round
so it would roll
light so it could be thrown
seamed to grip
so it wouldn't slip
but skip curve dip
dive dance on air
soaring in high looping arcs
brushing clear azure blue
landing outside the fence

it was made for play
and bring people together
to share the ambience
of a balmy summer day
sitting on a bench
with nothing to do
but watch others
play the game
and wish you could
do it too