now, in my seventies,
i finally get it:
it’s about doing what
you can for others,
to become selfless,
to be a good person.
when, on that final day,
they lay me to rest and say,
he was a good man,
to deserve it.
to have everyone there
nod in agreement–
that’s it. that’s all of it.
–photo by mom?
the forest fire rages just a few miles away–
if the wind begins to shift, we must all evacuate.
if the siren starts to blow, it’ll blow my worried mind–
do i take the kitty too? i can’t leave her behind!
i guess i’d take the things most important of all:
my laptop, the kitty, and my captain kirk doll!
–photo by me
the constructs of man,
the smartest of apes,
arise from the ground
in arboresque shapes,
betraying perhaps
a wish that he could
return to the trees,
and trade metal
for wood.
–photo by son aaron
it’s another beautiful day in paradise
and i’m just glad to be alive
but then, trump
i feel pretty good for an old man
and i am so grateful for that
but then, trump
i feel my spirit igniting
and perhaps i’ll take a walk
but then, trump
sorry about all this–
i was going to write something good
but then, well, you know
–photo by me
when taking
family photographs,
here’s one thing
that i’ve found:
there’s alway some jerk who laughs
and horses around.
–photo by me
mother wolf carefully crept
up to the young deer as he slept;
tonight, she’d have meat
for her poor pups to eat–
somewhere, another mom wept.
in the still of the morning, i dismounted from my bike,
and i headed out on foot, for an early morning hike.
at last! my secret spot, i hadn’t been to for a year,
and i cried out on the wind, “i’m still here! i’m still here!”
–photos by me
the sun is a point in the cosmos,
the earth, but a mere speck of dust,
and i’m a small ant on that anthill
just doing the small things that i must.
***
and so the whole thing makes me wonder,
here, in my minuscule home:
if i should jot down some small verses,
then what is the size of that poem?
***
Is it as big as the cosmos,
or infinitesimally small?
perhaps when it comes to poetry,
the truth is that one size fits all.
–photo not by me
ocean waves crash
upon sandy beaches–
an ancient pulse
that we all know.
our hearts slow
as our bodies try
to beat as one
with mother earth.
–photo by son, aaron
as i was walking home last night, a thunderstorm blew in,
but i would not be hurried though the rain would soon begin.
lightning arced across the sky in splendid disarray,
and for a moment night became as naked as the day,
and though the wind began to drive the rain against my face,
i challenged heaven’s fury, and i kept my steady pace.
the sky unleashed a deluge as the wind began to roar,
and soon the blinding sheets of rain had drenched me to the core.
eventually, the rain let up, the wind began to die,
and soon a warm and gentle breeze began to clear the sky;
the stars came out like shining jewels adorning heaven’s dome–
the storm had passed, and now at last, i ran like hell for home.
–image by ai
michaeljordahl 