Jordan

the brooding, silent safety
of Jordan
Mastiff-Pit pooch
with sorry, sloppy eyes
which begged us to commiserate
weary with age and illness
four legs, one broad back
shouldered the columns
that uphold
the three worlds

moment by moment

moment by moment
we see the healing of all wounds
in all beings of all worlds
with no insurance
without a prescription

with hands
over hearts
hers and yours
braided together

with 3 ingredients
in the poultice they hold

-- infinity
quaking
and mud

please, no cake for me

growth requires no effort
no arrogance, no air of sophistry
sit on your inner throne
and watch the world eat you awake

a turn of your head
topples the wealthy
circumvents
the stealthy

please, no cake for me
I have had my fill of luxury
let's be pragmatic, like stone
people don't know
from whence their next hint
of lotus breath

borrowing, borrowing
from each other
never intending to pay back
no expectation
of being paid

wonders never cease
because they never started
no virgin birth, no Big Bang
just spontaneous combustion
concurrent cameo
no end in sight
no beginning
we can claim
as our own

where Jaco lives

bass, mostly defunct
stands against living room wall
year in and out, patient

A dream -- from several years ago

We are in the hold of an alien spaceship. We wait there. We are disheartened, unable to imagine a way out.
The spaceship belongs to aliens, from another dimension. But at the same time, they are Republicans. Or, rather, they are the same energy that has invaded the brains of far-right conservatives.
With little hope, we simply wait.
There is a screen on the wall of the hold. It is blank.
A scene, an old grainy film, begins to play on it.
It is not of the aliens. It is…a miracle of some sort, an emanation from some unknown source that seeks to free us.
The scene is of a wedding, a young couple getting married, embracing. And with deep grief, we realize that the couple, joyfully celebrating, are Bobby Kennedy and his wife.
We are sad, yet we are joyful, too. Bobby was assassinated, but his spirit is still alive. It has brought us this film as a token, to show us that he still exists as spirit, ever-joyful, as on his wedding day.
Our hearts hurt and we cry, yet they celebrate at the same time. We will find a way out of this ship. We will rise up against the aliens.

Missouri Sky

Pat Metheny knows
to fold the moment
into crystal prisms
with guitar sparks
and chord sorcery
rhythm moves deep
in the glass, sees
inexplicable visions
liberated
in sound

haiku -- @ Einstein Brothers' bagels

woke up in thick fog
beginning to understand
bare branches through skylight