KEEP a red heart of memories
Under the great gray rain sheds of the sky,
Under the open sun and the yellow gloaming embers.
Remember all paydays of lilacs and songbirds;
All starlights of cool memories on storm paths.
  
Out of this prairie rise the faces of dead men.
They speak to me. I can not tell you what they say.
  
Other faces rise on the prairie.
  They are the unborn. The future.
  
Yesterday and to-morrow cross and mix on the skyline
The two are lost in a purple haze. One forgets. One waits.
  
In the yellow dust of sunsets, in the meadows of vermilion eight o'clock June nights ... the dead men and the unborn children speak to me ... I can not tell you what they say ... you listen and you know.
  
I don't care who you are, man:
I know a woman is looking for you
and her soul is a corn-tassel kissing a south-west wind.
(The farm-boy whose face is the color of brick-dust, is calling the cows; he will form the letter X with crossed streams of milk from the teats; he will beat a tattoo on the bottom of a tin pail with X's of milk.)
  
I don't care who you are, man:
I know sons and daughters looking for you
And they are gray dust working toward star paths
And you see them from a garret window when you laugh
At your luck and murmur, "I don't care."
  
I don't care who you are, woman:
I know a man is looking for you
And his soul is a south-west wind kissing a corn-tassel.
  
(The kitchen ******* the farm is throwing oats to the chickens and the buff of their feathers says hello to the sunset's late maroon.)
  
I don't care who you are, woman:
I know sons and daughters looking for you
And they are next year's wheat or the year after hidden in the dark and loam.
  
My love is a yellow hammer spinning circles in Ohio, Indiana. My love is a redbird shooting flights in straight lines in Kentucky and Tennessee. My love is an early robin flaming an ember of copper on her shoulders in March and April. My love is a graybird living in the eaves of a Michigan house all winter. Why is my love always a crying thing of wings?
  
On the Indiana dunes, in the Mississippi marshes, I have asked: Is it only a fishbone on the beach?
Is it only a dog's jaw or a horse's skull whitening in the sun? Is the red heart of man only ashes? Is the flame of it all a white light switched off and the power house wires cut?
  
Why do the prairie roses answer every summer? Why do the changing repeating rains come back out of the salt sea wind-blown? Why do the stars keep their tracks? Why do the cradles of the sky rock new babies?

Tuna sandwiches on white bread
Carried in a paper bag
Josh Groban on the CD player
Season Three of 2 broke Girls
Matching shoes and purses
Vacation in the Pocanos
Subscription to People Magazine
Pennies in a piggy bank
Silver-beige 4-door Accord
A little college but no degree
Always ten pounds overweight
Celebration meal at Sizzler
Artificial Christmas tree pre-lit
A mole that wants removing
Off white walls, pale green carpet
Outfits from mail order catalogs
Paydays with no yearly bonus
Jeopardy and Wheel of fortune
Polyester perm press everything
Bic Stik ball point pen
Swanson's TV dinner
Flip phone with no camera
*** two times a week and Sunday
Writing verse nobody reads
ljm

graham ******* mud pie at pop's,
rest his soul
the rush of new friendships,
the faith in letting go

reading when you’re lonely,
chillin' while you’re old,
rivers in the blinding heat,
campfires in the cold

car rides with the windows down,
jogging with the pooch,
biking through a foreign town,
stealing a native smooch

gum drops,
lemon heads,
marshmallow peeps,
sunday dinner,
carnivals,
local meet-and-greets

snow days,
warm winter days,
soup to ward the flu,
paydays,
big-puppy days,
and coming home to you

Are you afraid? You're not alone.
Are you hungry? Cold?
You're not alone.
Are you barely making it
between paydays?
I'm sure you can guess
where I'm going with this.
You may not want to
connect with anyone.
But just know:
You may have been alone before.
But things have changed;
Your boat's not empty anymore.

Ferraris fit for racing
Being iced "Gelato"
tasting Italia
No sleep for Mama Mia
Customs of loving
The Zzz Z's

Sunrisers * God bless U
Sneeze
My Wine and cheese
Don't snooze
Pancakes not to share
Syrupy so Zippy
Show someone

"U Care'
The zest of trippy

The timeshare
Calendar date
The lust stare
reminder
"Keep the Date"
Don't dream blind her
To find the biggest
spender
We R the world
compromise
Love her like nobody else
Could take her place

Be the kinder true lover
*       *       *       *       *       *
Catch up Zzz z"s
Wake up Buzz
Cop some Zzz z"z
Get off the computer
D's 4 dummies
The zest of love
is fate
Wake up from those
dreams no time 2-B
Late

All V's Validate
Victory
Valiant
Valentino
cappuccino
(Valentine days)
I Luv paydays
Vows

I Crown U
Queen B bee BBB
Holidays B bills
Oh! GGG's
Gowns zigzags
designs

Give me a sign
On her head
"Queen of the Reign"

Zest smells of lemon
The best sleep she
ever had
Never 2-B sad

Zzz z"s zoonotic
Zillion stars in
L for Love
Hypnotic H's Henry
the 8th moon hum
He went mad Mmm
*** a humdrum
Robin Bird singing slam
Wait till he proposes on the
Tenth P & Q

Bbbbb's the blues
Those y's needed more
years_
Zig Zag catch
40 winks
Frequent flyers
of jet lag drinks

Only 50_ dollars it stinks
More Zzz z"s zap a zillions
Just crash fingers do
the talking
I pad in millions
Ssss Shh stalking
Bunk bed Beatles
bopping heads
Abby Lane walking

Zonk out what a time
Apartment 4- A he
balled me out
I feel stretched to my
limit V- Visa
I'm out to sleep
Rest recovery went way
too deep with Lisa

R-4 Joy my middle name
This is not about
all letters to keep
Or the Alphabet

Not takeoff movie set
This poem
New discovery,
To be happy

Don't oversleep_

Smiling like no other
sunset rose stem
Create your time
Lips met the sunset
Don't hide your
words with disguises

The call of duty
My Mom the lovely
"Judy"
She smiles never sleeps
My heart is tied with hers
To keep

What is the Zzz z's
Zealous
Delicious
Jealous
Love heart
Don't cut out my shape
Down to zero escape

Don't hibernate with
Zombies more hobbies
R for recuperation
We need better cooperation
Be the leader don't zonk out
The Army tank catch those
Zzz z's
Before your time is out

I can hear the muses calling
'Though my hands are tied with work
And ghandarvas sing through cracks
Beyond the off-white office walls.
I know I should be free with them.
But instead:
Sign here,
Date there,
Keep the tally,
O reckoner of warehouse sheets!
The condition of modern slavery
Of entire paydays spent at once
While knowing that a human life
Is more precious than the profit line.

Its a lovely day, love the smell of ****** in the morning
Its all okay, dank copped in my palm every mornin
No more paydays everything's stopped but Im not mourning
Its another friday aint that somethin outside its pouring
Inside its smoking baking home-cooking

Homies and I all ready to die
Shorty said lets all get high
Sevenfourtyseven time to fly
No worries no more suit and tie
I like ta party not to pry

Its a lovely day, Love the view of Cali Palms in the morning
And its all okay, me and the crew on one since the mornin
Aint working anyway nothing to stop us we soaring
Its another friday aint that somethin a drink I'm pourin
Inside its smoking baking home-cooking

Party favors in designer flavors
Stop n savor on recliners
Pop life savers in  highwaters
Trashed proper I teeter totter
Smashed party rocker

Double shot of *** drink harder than a privateer  
Backwoods, blunt smokin like a famous rapper
Outta wraps roll with hunnids whole lotta paper
All outta drugs call the plug for more favors
All about a good time its all we're after

Homies and I all ready to die
Shorty said lets all get high
Sevenfourtyseven time to fly
No worries no more suit and tie
I like ta party not to pry