You sing your caged bird song
a lonely trill that echoes in the hearts of mothers,
with a tug at familiar longings,
but the wisdom of a thousand shattered
fragments of love.
So fly. Go. I will be here to catch you.…
Today was a day of the normal business that we all go about, getting kids off to school, taking care of sick me and daughter, and ultimately trying to keep myself from spending the day in bed all day. As dinner wrapped up and I settled into my evening routine, my email was sitting their waiting to be checked.…
One time you count
and another might
count down the time
to find.
On this side of glass
the faces blur, lines
are reflected
in the headlights.
Equipped with the operator’s
manual it will make security
seem sure. As if you could solve
any problem:
flesh,
steel,
just hide from looking for yourself.…
for Mighty Mike McGee
Looking for the scrap in a day, a week,
but this one is too small and that one too weary.
Believing that it is possible to trade
now for later, but missing the magic of the present.…
I want to fix your algorithm, but all I accomplish
is complicating the mathematics between us.
See, my formula is full of prime numbers,
but you, you want the geometry of my angles to total something odd.
Line brackets up on either side to solve me, but you don’t need to,
you’re sure of the solution.…
The summer that:
we went tumbling down the Pemi
more times than I can count,
found comfort in charity bread,
spoke of our future
like we were picking
out constellations —
as if the future held
some magic, a way
to keep the thoughts of
the bottom falling out
held at bay.…
…
As the official launch of Any Other Branch approaches, I am excited, nervous, and wondering how I can help my book on its journey to all of you. Self-promotion is one of the most awkward and narcissistic tasks a writer ever takes on.…
I have been reminded of my love for words over the holidays and the past month. Sometimes when you are teaching a ton of classes as an adjunct, you can squeeze in the occasional poem here or there. But you never get quality time with your writing.…
Man who knows how to dress
Like a woman, not in women’s clothes.
Voicing an opinion should always
be in the form of a question, or
with a request for agreement
added at the end of the opinion.
Sense of etiquette around my girlfriends
Essential.…