Beneath the surface, it’s all signals,
The coil of a metal detector,
The remote control of a drone,
A phone call,
An email,
An app,
A voice,
Circuits and antennae,
Information and noice,
Transmitters and receivers,
Sensors and data abound,
In copper,
Through air,
Beneath the earth,
Through the great black void,
Light by camera and eye,
Sound by mic and each ear,
Taste and smell and touch,
Each spark,
Each flash,
Each photon and wave,
Neuron to neuron,
It’s all signals,
Beneath the surface of all

~Beneath the Surface by Bethany Davis, January 1, 2024

He sings the ghosts,
Gives them voice,
Their memories,
Living in song and verse,
Their pain,
Their joy,
Their life now gone,
Each moments,
Sang but unsung,
Spoken but left silent,
Like a wind,
Blowing,
Forming,
A wind through hearts and souls,
Not felt with skin but hearts,
Each whisper,
Raised in song,
Beyond the words,
Beyond the notes,
Rising,
Living,
Heard yet silent,
Voices long lost,
Quieted,
Silenced,
But he hears,
He sings,
And we feel the wind,
The silent stories,
The lives unknown,
Past but not so lost,
Bells more felt than heard,
Ringing in our souls,
In harmony,
In melody,
In dissonance,
Woven in music,
Unheard with heard,
Unsung with sung,
Unknown with known,
A whisper in the soul,
The bells,
Ringing in the wind,
The wind called forth,
Ghost wind,
Long lost,
But never forgotten,
He sings the ghosts.

~He Sings the Ghosts, an ode to Gordon Lightfoot by Bethany Davis, April 3, 2016

What is poetry some might ask?
It's two robots, moving tapes in unison,
A dance where neither touches it's partner.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's a lazy Saturday, nothing to do,
No concerns or regrets as time passes unnoticed.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the moment just before dawn,
The sun still hiding but painting the sky with fire.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the quiet of a forest meadow in spring,
Still but living, gentle but vivid, forgotten yet always remembered.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's a lover's touch in the night barely felt,
The waves of knowing and being known through the lightest touch.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the soft chill of the evening on a mountain pass,
The ground warm but the air with a gentle bite warning of the night cold.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the almost memory of a dream just passed,
Fading in detail but the feeling that for an instant you knew contented joy.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the last words of a beloved book,
The satisfaction of things concluded and the loss of all that's done.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's a melody half remembered and half gone,
The knowledge and feeling of all the notes dancing and then resolved.

What is poetry some might ask?
It's the pang of death and joy of birth,
All of life folded up and inward into one word.

What is poetry some might ask?
It is.

~What is Poetry? by Bethany Davis, November 8, 2015

There is no smell in all the world,
None in the North or South,
None in the East or West,
None in the lowest places,
None on the highest peaks,
Like that smell filling the air,
Filling the house,
Filling my senses,
That smell of spaghetti frying,
Frying in the morning light,
The smell so different from when it was first cooked,
Moving the senses,
Moving the mind,
Anticipation in scent,
The sauce sizzling,
Changing,
Changing in the frying pan,
As the noodles turn crisper,
Crisper,
Crisp,
With that crispness like no other,
The noodles,
No longer white,
Made yellow,
Yellow from the sauce,
Fried onto them,
One with them,
Flavours seeping in,
And the sauce,
Orange now,
Red orange but clearly orange,
No longer the bright red it was when it entered the pan,
And as the sauce and noodles change,
Reach that perfect point,
The smell just right,
The colour just right,
The texture just right,
The sizzling reaching the perfect crescendo,
Then, and only then,
The spaghetti no longer stirring,
Evened out,
Temperature lowered,
And carefully,
Slowly,
To keep them on the top,
The eggs break,
White running among the noodles,
Filling the gaps,
Turning from clear to white as they hit the hot pan,
Yolks floating on top where they should be,
The perfect drop,
And the odours as the white changes,
Filling the air with new scents,
Mingling with the ones already present,
And then the salt, disappearing on the surface,
The black pepper,
Black flects,
Scattered evenly,
Perfectly,
The smell of pepper joining the egg and spaghetti,
And a splash of Tobacco Sauce across the whole,
That hot smell,
That bright red colour,
And the silver lid slips on,
Over the top,
Hiding,
Protecting,
Cooking the whole,
Until it is done,
And the lid set aside,
The whole onto a plate,
Perfect to the senses,
The smell,
The colours,
The texture,
Perfect,
And the first bight,
Heavenly,
Like nothing else on earth,
Almost sweet,
But still savoury,
Strange to those knowing bowled pasta,
Strange to those knowing simmered sauce,
Strange to those knowing fried eggs,
But the tastes,
Perfect,
Blended,
Strange but familiar,
Many memories,
Images,
Experiences,
All coming together like the different parts of the fried spaghetti,
And the fork through the yoke,
As it runs down,
Bright yellow into orange and red and black and white,
Perfect,
Amazing,
Done.

~The Smell of Fried Spaghetti by Bethany Davis, June 19, 2015

Dark and cold and howling wind,
My ire hot and anger strong,
I walk the streets and long for blood,
A lioness whose prey is gone.
My skin is cold but blood is hot,
The need to rip, the need to hurt,
I know I can’t nor would I try,
But hurt and anger are deadly food,
And I eat upon it in the dark,
And all that’s past and all to come,
I know I must step back and calm,
To calm and settle and fight no more,
To return to peace, to cool my blood,
And in the dark and cold and wind,
I try to calm, I look for peace,
For ire cooled and anger dropped,
For waning fire and waxing calm,
Back to myself, I turn once more,
And let it go and walk beyond,
The lioness back to her cave,
And warm my skin and cool my blood,
And let Fate do what must be done.
~Heated Blood by Bethany Davis, October 5, 2014

The smell of rain,
In the August air,
The fresh air joy,
The moisture comes,
The smell of grass,
It's smiling joy,
Sweet relief,
From Summer heat,
With the grass,
And with the rain,
I smile and laugh,
At its gentle kiss,
A light caress,
Upon my skin,
A lover's touch,
After time apart,
A gentle touch,
Just barely felt,
That in the light,
Delights my soul,
I smile up,
At the shining sun,
Rays through the clouds,
Drops of light,
The drops of rain,
My lover's smile,
Our eyes they meet,
The drops of rain,
Her clear giggle,
The patter falls,
I take her hand,
And round we spin,
A dance of joy,
In August rain.

~August Rain by Bethany Davis, August 25, 2014

What beauty shines in dappled light,
In misty morning air?
What beauty's cloaked in foggy mist,
Waiting to be shone?
The light it changes endlessly,
No view is ever twice,
Sun and rain and mist and fog,
The ever changing light.
The hills they roll in endless clefts,
Valleys and ridges roll,
Endless land that ever goes,
From dawn way out to dusk.
A home it is this peaceful place,
If only for a time,
The comfort of the love here found,
That makes a house a home.
Horses graze to their delight,
The moisture fine with them.
The rabbits hope, the birds all sing,
The magpie glides around.
Few have seen the morning light,
Out shining through the mist,
Few there are that know delight,
Of ranch's peacefulness.
Here I sit in morning light,
The peace it fills my soul.
Refreshing rain and my delight,
Out here far from home.
What beauty shines in dappled light,
In misty morning air?
What beauty's cloaked in foggy mist,
Waiting to be shone?
The light it changes endlessly,
No view is ever twice,
Sun and rain and mist and fog,
The ever changing light.

~Dappled Light by Bethany Davis, June 7, 2014