“I always think that the best way to know God is to love many things.” ~ Vincent van Gogh
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Thursday, October 29, 2015

Young Man Observed


Overlooking the garden
he sits mute,
music in his ears – his alone 
through long white cords;
a small smile, and his fingers 
caressing his phone.



Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Past and Present LIves

In her vision
the cobra was black,
confronting her
with a large emerald
shining between its eyes.

I told her
she must have been a queen
in old Egypt.
She said she missed her slaves
(hated cleaning the house).


After Last Night's Thunder


After last night's thunder,

which rumbled close
around the house
like a man with heavy boots
walking all over the roof,
I open the door to a day
washed clean by rain,
bright in the sunshine.



Process notes:

A series of half-rhymes: close/house; boots/roof; day/rain – the whole enclosed in another: thunder/sunshine.

Sunday, October 25, 2015

A Vase of Gardenias

Their tiny white heads
bend forward over the rim 
to release their piercing scent.

The leaves are standing up
forming a green ruff
around each neck.

The green glass vase holding them
swells like a full-bodied woman 
in a sarong ... maybe she is pregnant.

Friday, October 23, 2015

Unseen, the Gecko

Unseen, the gecko
on my outside wall
chirps loudly, 
staccato.

It wants to slip in
under the door
through a crack
and skitter around the house
between concealments.

I know without looking
it is tiny, pale grey,
and if it enters will die soon
for lack of insects.

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Street Scene


The girl across the road is a teenager now,
riding up and down on her scooter
in front of her house, laughing and chatting
to her older brother, who is tinkering with his car.

They don’t seem worried about the storm clouds
and the few small spits of rain, nor the rumble
of thunder getting nearer. Her bright orange curls
float on the air behind her as she speeds and turns.


Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Vista


The cane is cut now
around the intersection,
exposing, over the flat fields,
endless horizons of pale blue sky.


Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Looking Around My Room

My room is full of colour – the pictures, the ornaments, my collection of clowns, the clutter on the table…





My toy teddy bear sits on a chair nearby, staring at me fixedly with a purposeful expression. The small, purple-clad, porcelain clown’s little hands are poised mid-gesticulation.




I glimpse through the screen door a slice of garden, where the breeze is creating a wave of sighs and rustles among the leaves.