modern

canyon stains reflect
in the stream-- solid & liquid
indecipherable. a distracting
decibel, land-lines are layers
on silence. the wind picks up
a pebble, careens it south into the shade
of a wall. a cactus reaches outwards,
towards the sun. a condor, circling twice &
finding footprints, flies off. silhouettes
among the flatland: an opened can with a jagged
lip, a horseshoe turned down, a tumbling weed
killer flyer crumpled & wind-dusted, a broken wagon wheel
as a reminder of what once was.

makin' custard

(ask to read)

exercise

after a bout
legs drag through custard
housebound journey stops
short of the kitchen

now i'm just rambling.

i.
crayon stained walls
enveloped secrets
the ones expected of drawn curtains,
slow moving silhouettes and gateless fences

weekly doctor visits
post-sunrise sanitations
left caffeinated, mouths turned down

doors creak occasionally
occasionally glimpsed footprints
wind-dusted then removed


ii
the day the coffin was removed we gathered on our porches. the woman stood outside motionless with her head in her hands. the wind picked up her hair and pulled it forward, along with her dress.

quickly written pantoum

upon the zebra print bedspread
a black cat sleeps, curled
with my foot as a pillow for his head,
his tail, furled then unfurled

a black cat sleeps, curled
inside the kitchen sink
his tail, furled then unfurled.
yawning, he waits for a drink

inside the kitchen sink
i allow the faucet to drip
yawning, he waits for a drink
droplets fall upon his lip

i allow the faucet to drip
as his tongue delicately laps at the water
droplets fall from his lip
with his whiskers, he looks like an otter

his tongue delicately laps at dream water
with my foot as a pillow for his head
with his whiskers he looks like an otter
upon the zebra print bedspread

once upon a summer

(ask to read, submitted to magazine)

a way out

he claims they were forgotten there. tangled carelessly underneath the rock in the river. the ugly children found them with their nets, mindlessly removing cigarette butts and used diapers for class credit. the young one discovered the pile: golden pocket watches, unmarked bags of different powders, a handgun and jewelry. expensive jewelry. he turned to his wife and she slapped him, got into his car and drove away. that was plan B.