Little Collection of Poems
1.
Sacrifice the desire long chiseled in stone
to tramp a path made of branches and roots and to sit
at the feet of the world
***
2.
Listen to the small gods.
The gods who steal your things
and stash them under your bed for later
where dust bunnies gently consume them
carefully wrapping each item in a soft case of dust and fur
then whisper them back into your dreams
***
3.
She eats sunlight and shadow
at the place where the asphalt gives
and the very large sunflower grows
You see the enormous flower
rising from the little crack and smile
feel the brush of a wing cross your cheek
of the bird who forgot their seed
stashed for safe keeping
on a hot and thick summer’s day.
***
4.
A flock of house finches arrived in my dreams
common as shrubs
one young fledgling had a toothpick arrow
in her back
Someone knelt,
cupped her gently in their hands,
and plucked it out
She flew from us
as if it had never been her arrow
***
5.
A spider tattooed a web on my left shoulder while I slept.
I had nearly crushed her in my oafish sleep
while she spun my dreams,
so she bit down on that tender skin
where armpit meets torso on my right.
The marks of her exclamation were evident, itchy and raw,
welted, and swollen for weeks,
the scar lingered.
Spider said, “You are not listening! Turn towards me.”
“To the left or the right?” I ask. “The tattoo or the bite.”
Spider whispers into my ear. “It is far safer over here.”
I turn left
we tumble
down a shimmering net of dreams
knocking dew drops
as we fall.
***
6. Small Victories
Like all children
I was born knowing
the world alive
And resisted the those who seek to drain
Being from the world and wipe her tracks
from our bones
One day, not long after my 4th birthday,
it came to pass that I thrashed and clawed and wailed,
as if being taken to the living witches pyre,
as my father dragged me down the hall
stuffed me half naked into the car
I growled and howled, and tore
at the seats with my teeth.
All the way
to the little
Unitarian church
down the street
Where some brave soul had to dress me.
The tiny but toothy wild witch casting curses
in the back seat of that little white VW Rabbit.
After a month, my church reluctant mother was abandoned
to teach crafts from around the world
While my father and I stayed home
to play in the mud and speak
with sunflowers and spiders.
And each evening
the three of us stood
on those warm summer nights,
facing dusk to say thank you and goodnight
to the mountains, sparrows, and sun
and wave hello to the dark
sparkling stars.
***
7.
Ear to the ground. Bear crosses my path. She walks with me into the brush. We break into a run and shake and rattle our way up the hillside.
***
8.
She eats sunlight.
She eats starlight.
She eats moonlight
when the moon goes dark
she fasts.