long ago my dreams were forged
from molten sands of time
shining stained glass
intricate lacework mosaics
fit for a cathedral
then shattered
scattered
and lost
throughout the endless
heaven of your heart
by the thought
of your
love

this daily death
and nightly rebirth
these swelling buds
and falling leaves
this piling snow
and torrential flow

this in- and ex- halation

this building warmth
and inertia of cold
this body grows
and then it grows old
this rhythm of life
and imminent death

pervades everything i see
so, could it be
that, perhaps, this rhythm is me

in the face of the giant
sting like a wasp

when cornered by the mob
fight like a cat

under threat of the storm
lean into the wind

as the flood of life rages
float on a fast current

in the deafening silence
sing from your heart

on the brink of forever
be a part of the now

stay with me
i'm your escort
from the
void

stay with me
as i shed my
light
on
darkness

stay with me
as I coat your
soul
in
flesh

stay with me
as i print your
words
on
paper

stay with me
as I ****** you
from the
void

stay with me
now
oh words

oh words
do not retreat

the thing about the world is
it never stops spinning
it never stops it never rests

the day of all days
begins right away
it begins now it begins today

gathered clouds scatter
among the four winds
together forever never again

heard without hearing
seen without seeing
touched without touching
odorous words
taste of pain

been without being
lived without living
died without dying
odorous words
taste of pain

felt without feeling
bruised without bruising
knelt without kneeling
odorous words
taste of pain

sometimes people are toxic
but since they don't have fangs
their poison must be ingested
and thus their power does wane
for we have the freedom of choice
when blighted words waft our way
to listen and swallow their venom
or simply to walk away

he smiles to hide
the hurt inside
his shining eyes
are only lies

he laughs out loud
despite dark clouds
that clog his mind
with thoughts unkind

he lives a life
of hidden strife
and this, his plight
he obscures with light

so see his smile
and know his guile
his favorite mask?
you need not ask

october has let roar
with a blanket of heavy
a hope-silencing fog
a deep down smothering
of everything good

so now i sit
trying to write
something happy
so october
doesn’t
drown
me

see?

it’s rough.

welcome screen
should read
creativity killer
talent ecpliser
time exterminator
idol of america

instead
it says
roku

a moth feels
gravity for the flame
as it navigates the
darkest of nights
hunting for flowers
from which to sip
nocturnal ambrosia

and as the flame
chars gossamer wings
and its body
becomes one
with the universal
flame of love
the moth knows
that it never
had a choice

as i sit in your
alluring presence
i feel the pull
and understand the
gravity of the flame

the unknown roars
with a deafening silence
that obliterates the mundane
raising fears from deep within
that we didn't know we had

so we attempt
to pace the time-worn path
one step at a time
one more time

there is nowhere to hide

the sleeping god awakens
opening the heart gate
of unrefined love as
he watches her protect
the children of the earth

she groans in slow frustration
knowing she can't do more
bound by shackles forged
in the cold fires of disbelief
by her self-absorbed offspring

blinded by an unattainable horizon
they look to the sky for guidance
not understanding that
the help they desperately need
embraces them where they stand

so the time-bound round continues
the ebb and flow of seas and love
the rise and fall of leaders and nations
the mountains that once were valleys
in this place only circles live forever

that which sees
that which the eye sees
will never be seen

that which hears
that which the ear hears
will never be heard

that which knows
that which the mind knows
will never be known

see the unseen
hear the unheard
know the unknown

her wings glinting shades of autumn
as low-angle sunlight fills the ash tree
and embraces all below in golden light

she glides around me twice and falls
scarred yellow swallowtail wings lie still
the cloud-veiled sun mourns a fallen daughter

i knelt to see dull eyes and a worn body
life-scared wings told combat tales
a life well-lived on any scale

flaming darkened glazier
occult window screening
words congeal behind
soupy lettuce being

fish are always swimming
against the drizzle current
of my mindstream eddy
never rested never fluent

the cousin of the e-boy
is a flower antlered deer
he is holding smelly signs for
realistic road construction

but it all was smooshed
by the banana bus split
as it sounded around the corner
of the long lost underwater

parking garage in the bay
last level and i do mean last
very lost i tend to get lost
in there so there and there

is a bat swimming in
miracle whipped sin
at the parcel post nearby
chubby beagles munching

but bugles can't be eaten
unless you try to bite and
to see the empty
but it isn't really there

is it

wait what why

i stand before you
a simple man
hoping your soul will
recognize a friend

i hope you'll know
that at my heart
i have your best
i will never harm

i know you'll know
what you are
when you read
and your heart stirs

it's time to be
your very best
it's time to stand
take off the mask

it's time to free
all you have caged
it's time to pour forth
it's time to create

it's time to be free
and be your best self
it's time to lay down
worry and doubt

it's time to be all
it's time to be whole
it's time to step up
and accept yourself

arise from the ashes
arise from the dust
arise you bright phoenix
i say to myself

myriad biographies
trundling
cavernous wasteland
florescent battalions
rebounding
white tile headache
buy more feel less
human
be more by less

mystified by the moon
i wander westward
toward the crags and pines
of a rocky mountain horizon

i see her fullness flowing
her skin slowly shedding
as she freely lets go
of all that which she was given

without fear she moves
slowly descending
into her mountain grave
disappearing from my view

i witness her gentle death
fully aware of the illusion
and i rejoice in her birth
on the far side of the globe

as this goddess lights my path
my heart turns to my god
who each and every day
lends me my life’s breath

knowing that someday
i too, must let it go

blanketed in a polar cold
woven by the hollow sun
the hibernating hills
dream of sultry days
and the return
of forsaken love

and deep inside
the king of dust
wishes all he knew
was covered and ******
into a forgotten land
of stone and rust

and the queen
she plays along

and the king
he knows he must
wallow and wail
in the tenement halls of lust
he cannot be left alone
with his lack of trust

and the queen
she sings his song

his humanity dwindled
when he called himself just
in the face of all
that will combust
and the pressure
of the thickening dust

and the queen
she suffers long

but the queen
has been done wrong

upon water's silvered surface
the wind dances in waves
to the echo of the clouds
as a symphonic sunset plays

transmuting motion into color
and wedding sound to light
gracing hearts with courage
as they greet the coming night

quarter moon asymmetry
casts shadowed light
twilight’s first breath
gasps with coming night

hollow empty distance
star-glitter kiss
night’s violet depth
mysterious abyss

seven months of winter and
the bone-chill of winter rain
in late may is an abomination
and it being saturday
makes it unforgivable

to whom can i complain

lifetime belief
world
comes in

in eyes
in hands
in ears
in nose

in mind

what if
world
goes out

mirror's reflection

mirror's projection

goes out
world
what if

out mind

out nose
out ears
out hands
out eyes

goes out
world
lifetime belief

the clouds sing in hushed tones
reverence for refracting
rainbow drops of light
when all is poetry

the river whispers praise
rounds the bend and pools
in silent blue-green depth
when all is poetry

the tree creaks quietly
jealous of the rushing wind's
uprooted flowing freedom
when all is poetry

the snowfall mutely patters
piling high as if to save itself
for approaching warmer days
when all is poetry

even death's fearful staring gaze
with its toothy jagged grin
somehow loses power
when all is poetry

and the miles of shattered dreams
are ground to glimmering dust
and sprinkled on broken hearts
when all is poetry

the world's many melodies
both dissonant and pure
make us what we are
when all is poetry

she never forgets
and never forgives
the flick of her eye will destroy
the lump of coal heart
that combusts in her soul
is fanned by the unresting wind

she flies to me swiftly
on a cold thought
no concern or remorse in her wake
the gods cannot hear
and will never accept
the unerring advice that she gives

she is borne on the breeze
and never looks back
truth's sword falls broken behind
her will and desire
ride blossoming wheels
that burn in the sky of my mind

the hole in her heart
will never be filled
and if it was it would implode again
a goddess like she
can never find peace
such is the way of the wind

let princes of peace
and warring warriors
hear her name and never forget
their unholy birth
or their place in heaven
while the moon grinds the stars to fine dust

her ancient hallowed visages
enshrine his divine morning light
revealing their unending marriage

his wind-driven rain and ice
weather the signature of seasons
deeply etching her face

her birthed children
play amid gravity's attraction
populating her shoulders

his relentless currents
pulse through her cavities
conceiving their offspring

and as gleaming white aspen
flutter yellow-butterfly leaves
and dance on her curves

and as rainbow-shimmering trout
glide through his flowing heart
and dance in his stream

i feel their presence
living within juniper and boulder
and i dance in this moment

the mountain speaks
of being anchored
by roots so deep they burn

and this ancient wisdom
is reiterated by tree limbs
groaning against the wind

but light-hearted crows
taunt the stagnant below
as they surf the invisible tide

and having ascended
the golden eagle sees all
in the light of the setting sun

and I find myself torn
between being rock steady
and living while i'm alive

living
will ****
you




eventually

a land rising from the heart of the earth
imposing itself upon crystalline skies
a history written in the creator's hand
of generations sealed by nature’s guise

its very existence
is brought into question
each passing year
in this season-forsaken
corner of the world

the sun’s advance
toward this frigid
wind-blown high north
takes place behind
cloud-veiled skies

the transition from
empty white-brown winter
to full green-brown summer
happens suddenly
and on its own terms

terms that include
swollen buds nipped
frost-bitten daffodils
and late yellow crocus
blanketed in snow

rocky mountain spring is
late april sixty-degree days
trees in full leaf overnight
sticky snow-melt mud
and memorial day tulips

rushing wind whistles by
most sounds swept away
but i can hear rustling leaves
that must be thankful
for the strong stems that anchor them
to strong branches
just as the tree must be thankful for roots
which are thankful for the dirt
even though the blowing sand stings
as it erodes the tough bark
which the tree is thankful for btw

i hear birds chirping but none fly
it's almost like today's their sabbath
like maybe every so-many days
they take a rest
or maybe it's just too windy to fly
either way two are mourning
due to the lack of work they put in
as they were lazy and built a poor nest
i found their chick dead
on the lawn this morning
i guess we all reap what we sow
poor little thing - i blame the parents

in following the tree's example
i guess am thankful that
i live in a beautiful place
and what else should i expect
it's wyoming
it's windy
it's just that it would be so nice
to have one
even if it were just one
calm day

i'm sure the birds agree

you are my moonlight
mysterious and alluring
through all of your phases

you are my melody
entrancing and unique
music woven into your rhythms

your beauty is fluid
an ever-changing constant
and ocean-deep elegance

the mountain that is his heart
core of lava-basalt pressured granite
crumbled limestone shattered shale
clay pockets eroded sandstone
blowing in stinging swirls
taproot stabbed grassroot captive
rabbitbrush sagebrush cheatgrass
climbing to spruce fir and pine peaks
stony outcrops penetrating
her bluest-pale vaulted sky heart
he and she forever entangled
in life's beautifully rhythmic dance

my heart trembles
lying in the dust

wings broken
by the glass
of the windows
to your soul

your mysterious eyes
entice me so

o child of the sun
know you are loved
embraced by the heart of forever
though winter's long night
feels so dark, void of light
your song is heard
and echoes endlessly
like a golden thread
woven into eternal harmony
in the mind of the almighty
and there you are cradled
and sheltered in light
never alone, forever loved