Thanksgiving Leftovers

Hi all,

I was inspired by Thanksgiving leftovers when I wrote this:

It’s just leftovers
Cold lumpy leftovers
From the Thanksgiving feast
The turkey plucked dry
All his bones pried open
Meat now a bare middle
Sweet potato a little less sweet
Scraped to the bare black bottom
Of a small thinning pot
And the greens less leafy
An unforgiving slippery green river
The biscuits flaking and breaking
All now a crumbled mess

It’s just leftovers
So why now does a frown
Crown itself upon those lips
And tears clear away the table
Missing are the guests of yesteryear
Is it that tender voice you ponder
As you look through age’s yonder
To that smile that dressed and blessed
Served as a dish of gratitude
That made life good and plenty
At last it is memory and love
That remains leftover

A Fool's Paradise (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

I've written the following poem for O.S.I. The inspiring theme this week is A Fool's Paradise:

Youth is a paradise
Of acquaintances and friends
Of rendezvous and romance
Of parties and mirth
Of beauty and thrill

Youth is a paradise
For two
Of sunrise and passion
Of spring and bloom
Of nakedness and games
Of thrills and dates

Youth is a paradise
Of fools
Of shameless lies
Of betrayals
Of doom
Of fights
Of chase
Of risk
Of flight

While age
At last
A sanctuary
An island
Of peace
From youth

Back to Nature

Hi all,

Happy Saturday! Today I am inspired by the meme over at It's Thursday. The theme is back to nature.

Somewhere the eternal sun laughs. It laughs and amuses itself whether it is alone or in the presence of company. It cannot dim its essence or hide its mirth. It is purely sun, singular and infinite, wide and great in a plump, blue sky.

This is the return to nature, she thought as she travelled along the hard earth. She had left all her possessions along the roadside. Where she was going they were not needed. In her youth, she had loaded herself down with shiny things. She decorated bare flesh in stone and metal. She lavished herself in incense and smeared her face with rouge and dark eyes.

Then it all washed away in the flood. Her life floated down a great river and swallowed everything. It swallowed everything except her soul. There was nothing left to do but return to nature in the naked, laughing sun .

Heart of Gratitude

Gratitude in the warm sunlight
Laying its head against my sheets
Breathing in another beautiful morning
As a song of Thanksgiving leaps in my heart
Memory of loved ones and friends
Rises before me all smiles
Necessary to give thanks to God
For this most precious life of ours

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Seeking (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

I am writing this poem for O.S.I. and the theme is seeking.

Intense and full
Two strangers glancing
At a midnight moon
Seeking some intimate exchange
That requires their bodies
To balance the magic

A gentle rawness
Of hands and kisses
And heat
Of hands and kisses
And heat

Then he turns
To say something
Coldness in his breath
In the naked air
Of full beaming light

And the moon
Absorbed in her eyes
Her glistening skin
Blinds the sight
Of her tears

As unspoken words
Seeking to swallow
The night

Urn (Haiku Heights)

Hi all,

I've written a pair of haikus for Haiku Heights. The theme this week is urn.

Burn in morning light
Ashes pour out in the wind
Spirit of the earth

The urn casts shadow
Of memory and love peaks
In a timeless song

Shimmering Fish

Hi all,

Happy Wednesday! I’ve decided to take a dive and join in the fun meme over at Watery Wednesday. I took these photos a few months back of some shimmering fish at a local mall. Swimming fish resembles art to me!

Hourglass (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

Here is my latest poem inspired by this week's theme at O.S.I. hourglass:

Man of war
Man of wax
His wife a fixture
In ivory and stone
Dark deceptive
Ebony eyes
While crowds
March and groan

March and groan
March and groan
Through the looking glass
Of lime and stone
Bone of bone
As flesh decays
Wounded red
A single tear

Man of war
Man of wax
On display
At our museum
Through an hourglass
History’s glass
A legacy buried
As patrons pass

Ode to Orange, Brown, and Gold

This poem is inspired by the beautiful fall trees that greet me on my walks to work.

Spellbinding September
And the plumage of fall
Cascading her golden leaves
Upon my worn brown boots
No shame in our love
Bending towards light
Loving the blackness of night

Stains of orange pumpkin
Tattooed upon our knees
Bobbing for apples
Turning into lips
One last dip of summer
Before fall clothes nakedness
Only the trees are bare now

Foliage drawing nigh
Enlightening our eyes
Serenading the skies
And nature storing
Away her love
For winter

Winter in our bones
In the bareness of trees
Still longing for autumn light
To caress our skin
As love jumps
In a pile of leaves

Sky Watch: All Smiles

Hi all,

Here is my shot for Sky Watch Friday. This was taken on a recent trip to the Bronx Zoo. All smiles from my friendly stone man. Happy Sky Watch!!

Present & Past: An Intersection

Hi all,

I'd like to share a short story I wrote about the present and past. Hope you enjoy

The present and past had spotted each other at a long intersection. There were birthdays sandwiched in between colorful cone hats and frosted cakes. There was the occasional child’s tooth floating by. The tooth fairy had forgotten to collect it as it drifted like a white star. There were children who built their sand castles as tall as the heavens. They became lost friends of memory with forgotten names.

There were former lovers with a single rose in their hands. Their faces grew more abstract and vacant. They rose like flames in the moonlight, waltzing silently. A woman dressed in red led them, collecting roses beneath her feet.

There was youth smiling like the sun without care or worry. And the moon had leaned upon it and made the world regard the phenomena.

The present split the crowd for the opportunity to talk to her past. But the past stops for no one, retracing her footsteps, always glancing back.

Birdie (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

Here is a poem for O.S.I. and the theme is birdie. Hope you enjoy!

Hopeless gaze into the sky
A lonely boy with vacant eyes
Spots a birdie, his alone
A winged friend to follow home

Cheese (Acrostic)

Hi all,

I am posting this over at Acrostic Only and the theme is cheese. I also wanted to combine this with the meme at The Purple Tree House. Hope you enjoy it!

Cherish those lovely eyes
Heaven is forever pink
Enticing slices of sky
Enduring drops of morning
Sinks into our mouths
Ending full and sweet

Continuous Autumn

A continuous autumn
Singing and blithe
Colors the trees
Ignites the skies
Clinging to light
Winter’s icy breath
Extinguishes the heart
From a continuous autumn

Happy Sky Watch!

Sunset (O.S.I.)

Hi all,

I am writing a poem for O.S.I. and the theme this week is sunset. A very inspiring subject!

Sunset begets her daughters
Amarillo, marigold, and bronze
Calls forth her children
Azure, sapphire, indigo
Gathering to her side
Naranja, peach, tangerine
Song in their colors
Lavender, amethyst, dusk
A gift together
All her children
Beaming, pregnant sun