The Clearing

When I feel quiet, when I feel blue

The world opens up and gives me a clue

Most times I can’t see the forest through the trees

They’re etched by the memories of red autumn leaves

They fell long ago, eroding into dirt

Now cake on my feet distract from the bud’s flirt

My sallow-hued eyes pass over the sky

And land upon the horizon’s constant lie

That a clearing is ahead, where dandelions bloom

And bears’ noses are tickled by the mockingbird’s plume

The shadows cast over the thin forest floor

Covering the stoned path that leads to the door

That is adorned by a wreath of pungent dogwood

Beckoning if I could follow my nose, I should

If only I would trust that beautiful stench

The clearing’s promise I would find in a cinch

Stumbling through the darkness I search for a scent

That might be the clue to the door for which I am meant

Alone we are born, alone we embrace death

We have only these days with each other to share our breath

Rain, Rain, Stay Awhile

Rain, rain, come to play

Fall awhile and stay

Your drip, drip, drip

Makes my thoughts slip

Through the grassy mud

And chewed like a cud

Your sudden thunders bring

My attention to a ring

It snaps my heavy head

Out of its windy bed

Melting its crown open

And calming hungry lion’s den

My windowpanes snap

With each droplet’s pat

Filling a sea in the air

Of which I throw all care

Down and up and out

And through the roundabout

Shooting out somewhere

I have no idea where

My soul relaxes in the rain

It no longer feels pain

Seeing itself for itself

There’s finally room for myself

So rain, rain, stay awhile

Make my grin smile

Turn my crown up

Lift my highest cup

So my hammock might spread

And my body find its bed

Musings - August 28, 2011

The hum of the engine lingers in the heat
As the mother unbuckles her child from the seat
Exiting slowly, taking each breath by step
'Tis only a simple trip to the corner pharmacy
So pure, like a painting, except

Their canvas moves to the beat of her arm
Guiding her child down to avoid minute harm
She moves to the back end of the car
And notices his unwound shoelace
Overseeing his tying bent over the lot's dried tar

She touches his head, each strand sings
As if the crack of a hatched egg brings
New life with each ray of light
A new skill is learned by his hand
And her heart subtly leaps at this sight

I imagine they're out for milk
Or cough medicine to make his throat feel like silk
But every errand or task is another scene
In his burgeoning life's story
And his mother may be here in a portrait serene

When the innocence leaves, it leaves forever
Yet by her eyes, remains tied by a tether
Never shall it leave her maternal heart
Never shall he grow out of her image
She has built a David to transcend art

Parading its youthful exuberance
No ding, nick or scratch breaks its trance
Until the ultimate touch breaths life in
He'll move like sliding rock from a canyon
His cracks will scar his infected skin

The beating he takes from the sun's rays
She cannot prevent despite that she prays
So the simple act of a boy tying laces
No matter what ruins may come
Enlivens her heart, 'tho suspended time races