Without it
we are pedestrians

at a crosswalk with a redlight
that never changes

awash in petty laws
and ordinances

always afraid to risk
the tightrope of absurdity

but with it
the sky's the limit

and we can shed things
like old and tired cliches

the way we do clothes
that have long gone out of fashion

whit howland © 2021

stark

raw

naked lunch

loss

just words

they stare at me
every day

and I am still here
but you are gone

yet you are everywhere
now a conundrum

a Gordian Knot

whit howland © 2021

Packaging.
What’s
outside.
Wrapping,
covering,
hiding.
Packaging.­
Different
sizes,
shapes,
colors.
Some shiny
Some dull.
Some simple.
Some complex.
No two
alike.
Packaging
irrelevant
covering.
Shielding
what’s
inside.
Core.
Kernel.
Soul.
Packaging
superficiality.
Irr­elevant.
Hiding
what’s
at stake.
What’s inside.
Consciousness,
connection
to the
unified.
Past.
Present.
Future.
All one.
Universal,
milieu.
Journeys
the
same.
Experience,
growth,
de­velopment.
Packaging
immaterial.

A wind-up
tin soldier
walks across

the table stopped
only
by a jar of marbles

some clear some
opaque
some milky white

we can't change it
but perhaps we can
sweep it up

(but not under the rug)

tomorrow
will be a very
special day

whit howland © 2021

Thick nimbus clouds
against patches of white sky

more rain maybe
but either way gray

a bright red rubber ball
rolls down the street

still slick
from last night's storm

makes me think
of Superman's boots

our yard looks like
a lake

no matter how hard I try
I can't keep the basement from flooding

whit howland © 2021

You say it's late
maybe too late

to save this and you add
it's a sinking ship

and that there was never
any luster

or gild on the lily
so what do I say

AHH

it's what I ask that's the real
kicker

how does a ship sink
when it's never left the bottle

whit howland © 2021

A plate of milk curds
sweetened

and served with fruit
at yours and my expense

but what is the cost
of this journey

though delectable

some say is dicey
and existential

at best

whit howland © 2021