early evenings

the darkness comes early

lasts longer than light

the cold's in the bones

there's no will to fight

the waiting seems endless

with false hopes and turns

when finally you grasp it

it no longer burns

'tween shadow and starlight

you can't find your breath

the glow of the sunrise

like waking from death

the sunshine breaks through

the golden leaves shine

for a moment you're lost

for a moment you're mine

but mostly the clouds

grey and heavy with rain

pour lead in your soul

sound an endless refrain

is the thing that you long

worth the price that you pay

can you live with the cost

at the end of the day

when the ache overwhelms

and you've nowhere to go

i'm holding out hope

where the rain turns to snow

so blow on that flame

when the night is too long

wrap your love with a bow

i'll come to your song

blue day sunshine

it's summer now

the bee proclaims

as lazily he flits

from blade of grass

to flower bright

and all the bluebirds sing

the robin finds

a tasty worm

as tender berries ripen

the hummingbird

sips nectar sweet

with wings as fast as lightning

I drink it in

the long warm days

that whisper endless idylls

the nights of dreams

what-might-have-beens

that fade away by morning

but in the wind 

I sense a note

this moment cannot last

the days grow short

midsummer's past

and winter's round the corner

why is it so

in joyful times

my heart a shadow feels

though sunlight's strong

and breezes sweet

I cannot rest for long

it's summer now

the bee proclaims

yet in my eyes is fall

the rain that comes

the winter brings

and all the birds are gone

when it rains

i'm not ready this year for the silver drops

caught between a summer to forget and

falling into a complicated tomorrow

all the dying that wells up like puddles

between the muddy tracks of life lived

without enough jars to hold the dreams

it's pouring down whatever i think so i

simply listen to the splash as shards

today's arrows attacking what was

screaming what is rather than could be

i pull the covers up almost over my head

is this crazy world really what has come

does a graceful way to tap out remain

or must i find a way to dig in damp soil

take the present tense and make it new

no reserves no retreats no regrets

a new level of living beyond skin-deep

how it tears the blood to find the way

each wet splash reminds me that it comes

watering the ground bringing change

death rearranges in the dark but life will come

if i can find the hope to not remain alone

an icy walk

the treads on my boots grip the ungrippable

like studs on snow tires they slice through

the frozen matter on the ground no match

crunch

i'm moving faster than i expected with all

the sleet cannot stay my feet in these boots

i'm bounding through drifts and slushy mess

splash

the persistent freezing rain begins to coat 

my coat stiffens in the arctic temperatures

but inside i'm warm and dry impervious

crackle

in time i will become an ice sculpture

the ornament of a path less traveled

all to the unrelenting patter of icicles

chink

sonnet 2021

when all the world around does fade away

and hope shines through the clouds that block the sun

I find this life of ash and soot turned grey

begins to shine more bright than anyone

though rain that falls may sting my cheeks at times

more soft than tears that fall the drops obscure

my eyes are clear and see beyond the grime

to where all things are washed anew, made pure

although my hand has yet to feel your touch

each day I know is less to wait for you

what thought it makes my joy abound so much

to hold you close until you find me true

this life so full so lost is whirling free

as I with you am all I wish to be

Retail Therapy

The shopkeeper's glad it's raining

the folks straggle in from the wet

buy trinkets and things

from places unseen

in hopes they might travel there yet.

The shoppers are dreaming of sunshine

of gold coast and blue coast and west

throw coins in the till 

like a deep wishing well

and pray for a chance just to rest.

The days go around like a circus

the same show for different eyes

each new little thing

that comes into the ring

they greet with authentic surprise.

The shopkeeper closes up tight

he thinks of a day without rain

when sorrow and sighs

and customer whys

no longer are his to maintain.

Tomorrows dance away in his mind

he wonders how far he could go

if all he had saved

from yesterday's rain

was more than just melted snow.

Weather Advisory

The rocking chair squeaked like an upset kitten as the old man leaned back and forth, his faded blue jean overalls patched up in the usual places. Outside the torrent showed no signs of letting up and to all appearances the road would be renamed Mill River by midnight. He muttered as the relentless drops kept up a steady beat as if the roof dreamed of being a timpani in another life.

I leant closer to hear.

"I lost it. I lost it. I lost it."

"What? What did you lose?"

He kept muttering, the repetition as metronomic as the raindrops. Like an occasional cymbal crash, almost as an afterthought I repeated my question when the muttering fluctuated in any way. The day began to slip into night without much more than dim turning dimmer and I considered finally giving up and passing on, but thought to try one last time. Perhaps the flickering streetlights, sputtering in the deluge, sparked his mind.

He stopped. His bleary eyes focused on me for the first time. His voice not more than a hoarse whisper, partly from age and partly from the incessant words, came so low that I leaned in to hear.

"I lost the way."

"The way to where?"

"Home."