Behind the Soft Green Curtain

Spring has drawn a curtain such
that I cannot see far or deep into the woods
and even though in February grey and brown
I long for her nubile leaves and exploring vines
that satisfy my need for renewal,
I secretly hold dear the moments
viewed on cold trails
or searching through frosted glass
peering past the rows of rough bark
and gnarled branch hoping to find
seeking to know
the secrets of the hills
and boulders,
caressing their broad shoulders
and cambered thighs
loving them and knowing that
they will soon drop behind the soft green curtain
finding their flirtatious privacy only
in the company of the growing chaos of the forest.

Let It Go By

It’s a big dopey world.
Why doesn’t it make itself clear to us?
It has streaming oceans
Cacti strewn deserts
And grainy grassland.
So what does it want?
There are animals exotic
And waterways erotic
Floods, fires and volcanoes.
Pray how am I supposed to translate this
Into some meaningful message?
Where is the concordance?
Why do birds, sing and sing
Each passing day
And expect me to know just what they say?
There are seasons and lives
With chapters untranslated
Whispered in old talk and mumbled in new speak tied
In rooty knots so damn tight
My frustrated fingers soon fumble to
Loosen them from their amazement.
Do they laugh, it's so simple,
Turn the key
Come about and on by
Write it down
Not so hard
Not so hard
Let it go
Just let it go
Let it go
By?

And Then, Out of the Blue

What do you do when a lesbian tells you
that she thinks you are a hottie?
(OK by the way, she told me she was a lesbian,
seemingly as way of frameworking.)
· Say thank you.
· Blush, if you’ve got the corpuscles.
· Hmmm-smile-hmmm.
· Wait for it…wait for it…waits for it… …
· Feel complimented, not challenging her authority on such matters.
· Feel superior about your phenotype.
· Feel in your pocket for a quick gender check.
· Find a mirror and then look up sexually ambiguity.
· What me?
· Say thank you. It’s nice to be noticed.
· And of course, write about it.

Angel Cup

Damn.
-What?
I cracked the angel cup.
-Don’t make too much out of it.
How am I to know that?
-Well, it’s just a cup.
Ya, but… it was a gift.
-From her?
Ya…
-But that’s history now, a long time ago, no?
Ya, but now it’s not…perfect, like it was.
-Perfect?
Ya, it fit my hands just so, and the angel…
-Reminds you of her?
Ya, and how we were.
Damn.

Yes Again

Yes
Yes again
I will say yes
If I trust you it will be yes
If I can find my strength the answer will be yes
If I trust myself it will be yes
It will bring me out
So I affirm with
A nod
Yes

Yes

Yes
Everything is yes today
All my troubles will be far-away.
I trust you with the questions,
Fair?
My answer is just simply
Yes.
I’m sorry
Really sorry
But the answer
Is always yes.
No equivocating
No approximating
No hesitating
Rather
-Solely
And
Emphatically-
Yes.

Kent State Meditation

I know things could be different...
this reality
this today,
both from this side out
and then folded back
and in again.
And even a visible dent
or a kink
just a scratch
or a smudge
would mean a nudge
has set something on course,
that on day one
might mean very little,
but stretched in time
(not even mine)
could grow to
a peaceful force.