the tree makes no sound
its gold leaves blowing away
again and again
TO MY BOYS, THE GIFTS OF WATER AND FIRE
During the last week of school, I noticed my oldest son’s shoulders slumping a bit. He was sad that the year was ending - one of his best friends would be gone next year, off to middle school. I suggested we take a walk at the bay to “get some fresh air,” as my dad likes to say. We only walked a mile, but we found piles of little sand balls (evidence of little fiddler crabs) and picked up enough shells to fill my younger son’s right pocket.
Days later, on his last school day, his shoulders slumped even more. He was sighing and sad. I told him that sometimes, when I want to celebrate something special, or when my heart is hurting, I build myself a fire. I told him we could have a fire that night if he wanted.
While playing outside that afternoon, he came to me and said, “Can we make a fire, Mom?” I smiled and nodded.
As I started the fire in our chimenea, my lovely neighbor, her daughters, and her best friend joined us on the patio. The sun was setting over the bay. We toasted to successfully completing the school year, and to friendship.
the water and fire
and the cool wind blowing helps
carry the balance
To see my daily posts for the 100 Days of Mission Bay project, please join me on Instagram or Facebook ------- @100daysofmissionbay #100daysofmissionbay
spider on the sill
sitting there since yesterday -
don't you know it's Spring?
early June morning -
I thought I'd see blue today
grey sky you've returned
Thinking of you now,
a heat forms, there in my chest,
not like a bonfire,
but more like a round smooth stone,
warm from sitting in the sun.
day 29
My honeysuckles,
ever orange, greeting me
every morning.
A daily reminder to
make my own glad offering.
day 28
I AM NOT A POEM
I am not a poem
but a falling
into the river
that has always been.
I am not a poem
but a turning
towards a star
that wants to be seen.
I am not a poem
but the hardening
of a precious stone
before the polishing.
I am not a poem
but an opening
of a heart
that seeks to know.
Day 28 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April). Click here to support my writing and Tiferet Journal during this 30-day challenge. I'd like to help raise at least $100 in donations for Tiferet Journal - I'm only TEN DOLLARS away from my goal, help me get there! :)
day 27
BIRTHDAY
Full Pink Moon rising
the light of day behind me
blossoming Spring night
my friends are the evening stars
my joy is the nighttime sky
Day 27 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April). Click here to support my writing and Tiferet Journal during this 30-day challenge. I'd like to help raise at least $100 in donations for Tiferet Journal - I'm $50 away from my goal, help me get there! :)
day 23/a poem made up of only questions
DO YOU?
Hey lizard, in the sun, do you care about the flowers,
the honeysuckles swooning in the late day hours?
Hey hummingbird, drinking, do you care about the cars
racing down the noisy street to the hipster bars?
Hey butterfly, en route, do you care about the train
moving faster than you can with its own pre-destined lane?
Hey there red-tailed hawk, do you care that I can’t fly,
as you sit there on that pine tree so close to the sky?
Hey mourning dove, I hear you, do you care that I mourn too,
as you sing softly in the morning and remind me of the moon?
Day 23 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 21
Last year was the first time
I swam in a lake.
Under the water
mussels sliced my feet.
Last year was the first time
I ran in the rain.
I didn’t know rain
could be toxic at the time.
Last year was the first time
I swam under the moon.
Letting go I floated
in cold black water.
Last year was the first time
I ran in the dark
with barn owls and wind
soaring around me.
Last year was the first time
I ran over a mountain.
I hurt along the way
but I made it to the sea.
This year I’ll keep running
because I’m beautiful and free
like the lizards in my garden
and the hawks on the streetlights.
This year I’ll keep swimming
because I want my heart strong
like the high tide as it surges
and the pines along the shore.
Day 21 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 19/my name
cool and collected
I wish that's what my name meant
instead of desire
Day 19 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 17/open a favorite book, then without looking, point to a part of a page and write a poem inspired from the word or passage where your finger has landed
I got my cue today from Hafiz's "The Gift."
"And for no reason
A thousand birds
Choose my head for a conference table,
Start passing their cups of wine
And their wild songbooks all around."
A thousand times I
held the moon and sang to her
of how I loved you,
for no reason but to sing
music that warmed me like wine.
Day 17 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 15/haiku
cutting through the clouds
a golden band of sunlight
keeps me from the cold
Day 15 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 14/feeling alone
we mothers
are like the New Moon
no one can see us
on nights like these
worrying about tomorrow
as we look down at our children
we mothers
are like the Full Moon
no one can see us
on nights like these
when we are shining our brightest
amidst the fury of a storm
we mothers
are like the Spring Tide
no one can see us
on nights like these
our hopes rolling back and forth
in powerful waves
Day 14 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 13/anticipation
the curve of a waist
above fresh sheets -
summer evening
Day 13 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 10/on a bird's song I hear frequently
MOURNING DOVES
Mourning doves,
how lonesome you sound,
singing out your sorrow,
even when paired.
An uncanny birdsong,
full and low,
like breath across the mouth
of a large earthen vessel,
or the sound of a pan flute
blowing through the Badlands
calling out for
someone who is gone,
unfindable.
Day 10 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 7/experiencing as if for the first time
written in haibun form - a prose poem interleaved with one or more haiku
A haiku on the old coiled wall heater in the bathroom:
reliable friend
keeping me warm when I am
totally exposed
Day 7 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 6/a recent event
written in haibun form - a prose poem interleaved with one or more haiku
---
CLEAN AND EMPTY
I cleared all items off the kitchen counter: coffee maker, electric kettle, rice cooker, cutting boards, toaster, dish soap, dish rack, microwave, bottle of Beefeater London Dry Gin, bottle of Jameson Triple Distilled Irish Whiskey, and bottle of Elijah Craig Small Batch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. I wiped the grime off the items and old tile counter, then bleached the hell out of everything.
an uncluttered space -
clean and empty like it was
at the beginning
---
Day 6 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 2/keeping things whole
I KEEP MYSELF WHOLE
I keep myself whole
by changing shape;
key-like to unlock doors,
knife-edged to remove infection,
chain-link to keep things out,
concave to carry
the love of those who’ve stayed,
convex to magnify
the moments that mean something,
and when I am very tired,
like waves at ebbtide
receding from the shore.
I make no apologies.
My power is in my form.
I am always changing shape,
to keep myself whole.
Day 2 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).
day 1/what my eyes fall upon
EASTER LILY
Down in the city
inside brick walls under skylights,
a shaft of light shines
on the white blooms of an Easter lily.
Candles in glass votives twinkle.
I feel my shoulders come down.
The life of the lily,
the light of the sun,
the hands that lit the candles -
common, full of mystery and beauty,
found miracles.
Day 1 of TIFERET JOURNAL's 2018 April Poem-A-Thon (a poem a day for the entire month of April).