Events
Making Room (masculine)
When I first met him,
I knew in a moment
I would have to spend
the next few days
re-arranging my mind
so there’d be room
for him to stay.
Meat Eaters
These are bowls filled with some kind of black goop.
My friend says it’s the blood from the slaughterhouse
but why would they leave it where innocent people
could step in it? is what I said & he said
that’s the way meat eaters think.
Making Room (Feminine)
When I first met her,
I knew in a moment
I would have to spend
the next few days
re-arranging my mind
so there’d be room
for her to stay.
Make Believe
When I’m having
a really bad day,
she said, I pretend
I’m dead & you’d be
amazed how much that
perks you right up.
Listening Well
the hardest thing is listening well enough to quit worrying about dying
Listening Well (for Erik) (masc)
He had the gift of stopping time
& listening well
so that it was easy
to hear who we could become
& that was the future
he held safe
for each of us
in his great heart
you may ask, what now?
& I hope you understand
when we speak softly
among ourselves
& do not answer
just yet
for our future
is no longer the same
without him
Living Memory
I carry you with me into the world,
into the smell of rain
& the words that dance between people
& for me, it will always be this way,
walking in the light,
remembering being alive together
Listening For the Future (Feminine)
I’m on my way to the future, she said & I said, But you’re just sitting there listening & she smiled & said, It’s harder than you’d think with all the noise everyone else is making.
Listening For the Future (Masculine)
I’m on my way to the future, he said & I said, But you’re just sitting there listening & he smiled & said, It’s harder than you’d think with all the noise everyone else is making.
Laughter & Noise
There are lives I can imagine without children but none of them have the same laughter & noise.
Late Night
In the end, I think that I will like that we were sitting on the bed, talking & wondering where the time had gone.
Landscape of the Heart (Feminine)
It is still so new & all we see is the empty space, but that is not how it is in the landscape of the heart. There, there is no empty space & she still laughs & grapples with ideas & plans & nods wisely with each of us in turn. We are proud to have known her. We are proud to have called her friend.
Landscape of the Heart (Masculine)
It is still so new & all we see is the empty space, but that is not how it is in the landscape of the heart. There, there is no empty space & he still laughs & grapples with ideas & plans & nods wisely with each of us in turn. We are proud to have known him. We are proud to have called him friend.
Last Wish
I don’t care what you do when I’m gone, he told us. Just don’t bury me where the dog can find me.
Kindred Spirits
You’re the strangest person I ever met, she said & I said you too & we decided we’d know each other a long time.
Invention
I always wanted to invent something that would move around & make funny noises & would change the world as we know it & I forgot all about that until we had kids & now I see I came pretty close.
Indecision
torn between wanting to stay & wanting to go & worried it will be the wrong decision either way
Imagining World
In my dream, the angel shrugged & said, If we fail this time, it will be a failure of imagination & then she placed the world gently in the palm of my hand.
Hundred Percent
I’m of the opinion that people don’t know what they’re talking about 90 percent of the time,
my grandpa said & my grandma smiled & said , O, you’re too late.
The 10 percent slot filled up a few minutes ago.
& we could hear him muttering all the way back out to the garden
Illusion of Control
If you hold on to the handle, she said, it’s easier to maintain the illusion of control. But it’s more fun if you just let the wind carry you.