Worthy
This poem is about sudden changes in fortune or status, and how people react to them, in an attempt to prove themselves worthy.
poetry
Choice
A poem containing images from the reporting about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, which all feel a little too close to home.
Collards
This poem is an attempt to make from the humble collard not merely a tasty dish, but also a metaphor for interdependence.
Crazy Quilt
This rather gloomy poem laments the passage of time and the sourness that we sometimes feel when confronted with what we have, versus what we expected.
False Equivalencies
This poem lists pairs of things that seem alike but could not be more different. And it begs us not to conflate them.
Mother
A poem about the brave and noble and life-affirming qualities of some mothers, and how we honor their memory best through imitation.
Deja Vu
This poem compares the aftermath of the US 2020 election and the election in 2000, and wonders whether this is really a case of deja vu.
The Price
This poem is pretty simple and self-explanatory, but all the while it asks deep questions we all struggle to answer. Perhaps the poetic side of our nature is there for a reason. Thanks for coming by to read! What are the number of leagues Between our views, Do you suppose? Only a poet Only a …
Prayer for a Caretaker
This poem was inspired by a post on a FaceBook group I belong to, composed of those who caretake for those with disabilities, usually children. The post talked about shielding our charges from evil, and I had never really heard it put that way. It sounded almost biblical in its import. The poem is voiced …
Chicken Little
I came up with this poem while reading the stock market news. There, I found an article about the different levels of dips and dives the market takes, from corrections, to bear markets, to crashes. The article contained a colorful phrase, describing the stock market of March 2020, as “swooning.” From the market, we expect …
The Weight of Words
In my recent readings, I came across an image showing Vainglory and Pride as two separate depictions, two separate entities. (Image before the last chapter, depicting a mural in a 13th century tower in Siena, Italy, in The Square and the Tower, by Niall Ferguson.) I always thought of the two as being the same …
To Search
I wrote this poem with the typical complaint of smalltime bloggers or website owners in mind. This is a complaint, not a cry for help. I mean to say that there is something wrong, when the system’s complexity obfuscates the very purpose it was meant for. Also, to see what a very long way the …
The Lawman
This poem reminds me of the Lewis Carroll classic, The Walrus and the Carpenter. Especially the stanza that begins, “The time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of many things…” Like that poem, this one is filled with absurdity and euphemisms and wishful thinking. And crocodile tears, about leading the gullible astray. Thanks for …
Veto
Many of us have experienced buyer’s remorse, the feeling of sorrow after having bought something rashly. But I think there also exists a type of remorse over missed opportunities, over roads not taken. I recently made a responsible, reasoned decision. And almost immediately, I found myself full of regrets, for downplaying the romantic, impulsive side …
Good Will
I hope you can overlook the mixed metaphors in this poem about the year nearly behind us. I’m sure I’m not alone in being ready to see it in the rear view mirror. Thanks for coming by to read, and my sincerest Happy New Year! I say goodbye To a well-worn year, A year, a …
The Jealous Type
This poem reviews the deadly sin of Jealousy, and asks whether we can help being the envious beings we are. I notice this failing in myself, particularly with respect to writing and body-type, and I find it very hard to rise above. I believe my own jealousy is a side effect of, on the one …
Bullies
This poem is my response to the recent school shooting at Oxford High School in suburban Detroit, Michigan, and the string of school shootings that came before it, each without meaningful redress. Often you hear that the shooter was acting in response to being victimized by bullies. But surely they end up walking in the …
The Cabin
This poem is set at my father’s cabin and reminds us, that places are not the same, without the people we expect to see there. A toast to all those we miss this winter! Thanks for coming by to read. In dreams, I slowly seek to climb The staircase of my father’s house, The knotted …
Regrets
This poem came to me while driving into a very reddish sunset. At first, I thought it was a short story, some kind of science fiction about the end of the world. But the repetition and rhyme were too insistent. Hope you enjoy this story-poem, and take from it a lesson or two. Thanks for …
Despairing
Warning: rant enclosed. This poem is about the despair a modern writer may feel, in this age of electronic communication and very accurate search engines. At the same time that a writer desires to share his or her work with the world, he or she is stymied by this notion: most publishers demand that a …
Witches
This poem is perfectly suited for the full moon skies we are experiencing at present. Not exactly a Halloween poem, this was inspired by a story on JSTOR called Feminism’s Hidden Spiritual Side. It outlined how early feminists, disgruntled by the male slant of existing religions, often dabbled in non-patriarchal spiritual practices, including Theosophy, Spiritualism …
The Present
A hundred words are not enough To say what I would say. A hundred words are not enough To wipe your tears away. The milk is sour. The bread is stale. The mirror’s surface, blotched. Your energy has left you, And your slightest move is watched. Your bright success is going dim, Your proud attempts, …
Promise
This poem describes a garden I just visited in November in Florida. Fall is one of two extremely prolific growing seasons in Florida, the other being Spring. Each holds its own delights. Hope you enjoy this tapestry. Thanks for coming by to read! Globular yellow fruit, Pendant and raw, Puddles of passionfruit Drip down my …