Saturday, December 23, 2017

War Letter from a Long Summer


the hard heat
adds to the thrill
of being alive

stalking scorched streets
with cold-minded eyes
hardened
in the kiln
of too many voices

being that exception,
that warrior poet
standing alone,
is enough
to make us smile
in the blaze
of the hateful sun


Saturday, December 16, 2017

Invisible Flame of Misfit Workers


sublime
if we can creep
past the wear-down
rage

past thoughts
too hateful
to darken a page

past misery heedless
near needless
for pay
past the clock-worn
routines
we repeat every day

somewhere
some spark
flints away
in the dark
with plans
nearly hatched
for some progress
to mark

this waking dream
of guiding flame
powers us through
a poisoned mind frame

it is our own darkness
ourselves
that we fight
in the hellfire struggle
to create
our own light


Saturday, December 2, 2017

Drummer in Madison Square Park


tapping
to an endless dialogue
to no one at all
spattered
with brilliant rolls
percussion concussion
to make the doldrums die
walking the park to mark
the tail end of summer

joy in the sunshine
as the city
hustles
one stolen afternoon
at a time