sink, swim

Today is cruel fate and
yesterday a thorn
but grace dawns on
the morrow, glimmering
like diamonds riding
the gentle ocean glass.
And our hearts
are like ravens
And our souls
are like boats
But our spirits
are wild as a song
and they keep rising past
the wound of the sunset
the poetry of trees
to push higher against
the wind, to
straddle the cosmos and
breathe the stars.
So to this ship
softly sinking and
their black-eyed sailors,
to their tales
gently dying and
heroes in arms:
keep sailing
keep rowing
keep speaking
keep on.
Let it die
let it die
let it die with a grace.
Let it move
let it breathe
but never
let
it
stop

photo

flower

Hold me close lest
the bees tickle my nose
for to them I am a flower, you see!
Let your warm breath melt the
ice within my eyes, for
I was tired of seeing, but
you breathe life into my sight.
Let your heart beat in mine and
my heart beat in yours,
for how fond am I to hear
the drumming of two souls!
Let the sunshine of your face
speak to the darkness of mine,
for darling, you glow.
Let the twigs in your hair grow
to branches—birth leaves!—bloom
white flowers full, and from here we'll
build a swing and watch
the stars of eternity

Excerpts from Letters II

...
My darling my dear,
you were the sunshine
that lightened my eyes
but night has fallen and
our hearts go down with the moon.

The knot in my throat tightens
like sailboats caught in stagnant tide
But why, dear one, Oh why?

Could I have saved you, darling, child?

Excerpts from Letters I

...
It's midnight and you sleep
It's midnight and the road roars
It's midnight and the sky sighs
It's midnight and the cabinets shake
You should have known better
And I...

But now the air escapes my lips
with muffled word and speechless eyes
Mama, I didn't want to see you cry
Papa, I didn't want to see you die inside
I didn't mean to
I didn't mean to

There is snow in my hair as
I leave for a cloud of fire
and the gates of heaven and hell

Neverland

I saw two stars shoot
across a dimly lit sky
they were you—they were I—
disappearing into the blackness of night.
If the sky was a continent,
we'd be lost helplessly
but not without hope, for you see
there's not you, there's not I
but a "we"— pleasant company!

"If I could I would pick
all the stars to make
you a glittering crown,
oh my dear,
oh my love,"
said he. Then
with tall, bended knee and
rough, gentle hands
he would hold me close
then whisper, "Love endures"
And with ruby heart glowing
he'll hold me still
my heart in his heart
eternally filled.

There's a map in his eyes
of adventure and thrill
he'd sail through the storms
just to be with me still
just to gaze at me still

pictures of grandma

Hem Me In

Tell me why
the goosebumps grow
even when I wear my coat.
Neither rain nor weather
can freeze me over
but something still within my soul.
I am but patchwork upon
the quilt of time,
but something tears and
bares all stains beneath the covers.
O, what to do with daylight bright—
it burns the edges of my soul!
But when I gaze into your eyes
I find blazing light
and grace too hard to swallow.
"I am sick—I must die"
says Thomas, says Nashe,
but even then the stars will sing
"You make all things new"