For Dr. Suess

Who can hear you?
He who hears Whos
Wish I could hear half as well
And what is a Who anyhow?
Do such tiny people really exist?
Is the town of Who-ville a true ville?
Perhaps if I had elephant ears
Maybe I could hear a Who too
As it is I can hardly hear you
But last night in a dream
Horton whispered his secret
An axiom kind and smart:
You only listen with your ears
You hear people with your heart

Heart ****** to death
“Do you need the paramedics?”
Life and Death is three quick breaths
And 15 pumps
Or was it 11, or 22?
Where are they?
One deep rale
Where are they?
"Anung nung yari qui daddy?"
Eyes rolled up to GodDid you see a light?
Fatal heart won’t live through night,
Weekend, two weeks, re-evaluate
“Dey dun’t know daddy.  He’s a fighter.”
Alone in CCU committed act of faith
with laid hands on experience.
Comatose body wholly heaving with Holy contact
Then silence, stillness
Transfers, therapy, rehabilitation
Sent home by HMO
Came home first night to check on you:
Blotted brow and utterance
“Just try to go to sleep”
Came home one day to check on us
Then entered Jacob’s sleep
Headstone scarred by lawnmowers
Grass envelopes me
Gives me hug…you never did
Yet tears are all I see
Heart knows utterance by heart
“Fin, take care of mama.”
Heart de-virged through pain and loss
Salamat po Pops

15 tons
26 miles out to sea
10 boats brought his blessings
of luck and safety to shore
gracing a people with his presence
even in death 

with a reverence that translates
the smoky scent of incense burns
at the site if his future temple
as mourners bid 10,000 farewells
thank you Your Excellency
good bye Ngai

Love is nakedness
Not just under the sheets
But before God and Everyone
And I don’t want you to see me naked
I don’t want anyone to see me naked
I don’t want you to see my fragility, my vulnerability
Allow me to carry on my charade
Allow me to go on thinking I’m strong and brave
My heart is locked up in the highest tower
And I don’t have the key

Joni(1) said love is give and take
But you never gave yourself to me
I had to take you
We all had to take you
That way when things went bad
And they always did
In your heart you were never to blame
I thought I was so in love with you
Now I hope I never see you again

We had fun woman
Our voices sang beautiful harmonies
You smiled me soft and hard
I surprised you when I whispered in your ear
At the Chinese restaurant
And laid my head down on your shoulder for a second
You tore your blouse open in the church parking lot
When I was describing your stature you corrected me
“I don’t have to stick it out.  It’s always like that.”
You were all toughness and fragility
The kind of beauty that never fades
But you were too wild girl
No one could truly satisfy you
Not me, not your husband, not anyone

a peaceful puddle
reflections rippled by wind
a calmness of soul
mirroring the earth's stillness
illuminated by life

a child's biggest grin
running, stomping and splashing
exuberance flies
peacefulness replaced by joy
returns to wait for next child

Crawls out of tree trimming truck
Open windows, vacancy
Passer by calls out, “Home, Sweet Home”
Smile replies “Good morning projects”
Stretch, yawn, alive another day

Stacks in hand, bravado declares
“Hey, it just takes twenty to roll.”
Cars roll up, dealing time
“Mother ****, get off my line”
If his head wasn’t cracked like a fish on a hook
He could have made serious book

Screens left in car pockets, empty balloons on asphalt
****, this player’s playin’
Strawberries crawl out of woodwork
Rocks off for rocks transactions—no cash pay
Maybe this one will let you stay
Yo Becky, how are your kids?

**** ups from the past recite their script,
“You going to cop?”
Sprung like a Safeway chicken
You know the drill, just walk it off
Strung out with eyes afire
Well acquainted with your veins
Taking care to bleach needles
What about bloodied syringes, *** brains?

Got in trouble with your boys again
This time there’s no runnin’ anywhere
Pulled you off the top of the fence
Almost left your finger up there
Took a ride in an ambulance
Was it fun?

Your little sister and I flew
Picked you up from County UCLA Harbor
She cried the second she saw you
Don’t know if you even saw her
Since your eye was out of socket

Went up north to heal but started to deal
Big sister’s growing skunk
Little brother’s in Chino with Ming Tai
Big brother’s on America’s Most Wanted
Is this typical projects funk?

Brothers, sisters, homeboys, sensei all had voices
You had talent, promise but made other choices
Maybe now, brother, you can rest in peace
Here lies Shawn
All his heroes were dealers

Electricity is out
Shut down by nature’s power
Ice’s storm break danced till dawn
Twisting branch, limb and tree trunk onto lawn
16 nights of darkness
16 days of frost
16 days without power
Yet not all is lost
Relaxation’s comfort found in front of fireplace
Sun’s light deferred, soaked up in greener days
Hearth felt spiritual warming in fire brewed cup of simplicity
Candlelight flickerings augment the serendipity
16 days without power and not a thought of TV
16 nights of quiet and stillness
Strangely appealing to me