A short one filled
with three cubes
of ice

cracked from
a tray
metal not plastic

and what we
drink
is a mix of things

fruity
tarty
but mostly sweet

making us that
of many masks
and a thousand faces

whit howland © 2021

When evening sets in
and there's a bite

we put on sweaters
and shawls

because we feel it in our bones
of something we've never felt before

Whit Howland © 2020

copper tubes coils
gauges dials gyroscopes

boosters and lifters
gears and cogs

with buttons to push and
levers to pull

sometimes it buzzes
hisses and blows
like  a tea kettle or blasts

like a train whistle

we've all seen contraptions
like these in our grandest visions and

our wildest dreams

Whit Howland © 2020