Ode to a Young Gannet

when first you heard
those endless cries
you could not see
the restless hordes

but now you sense
how lost you are
amidst a sea
of swooping forms

and huddled there
how could you know
that sheet of blue
your future home

but first survive
the frigid gales
and then endure
the rain and sun

your parents strive
to keep you well
as scavengers
await your death

should you survive
it's off to sea
until your time
to parent comes

Night Vision

it is at dusk
our landscapes fade
as mother sun
withdraws her light

and then we see
the worlds beyond
and face the truth
that darkness brings

No Racist

he was no racist
he told us so
he even hired one
he paid him well

he was no racist
he knew the truth
they could be lazy
they could be trouble

he was no racist
some were his friends
just not on our block
just not at our church

Clouds

adrift above
like silent ships
sailing by
on steady winds

ever changing
vapor mounds
reflecting light
producing shade

at times alone
amidst the blue
at others packed
across the sky

bringing rain
to desert lands
or raging storms
to hapless towns

taking shapes
that children see
evoking fear
as darkness grows

they mirror us
in many ways
fickle friends
sudden foes

Early Days

modest home
neighbor friends
factory smoke
carefree days

backyard birds
burning leaves
trains and tools
love and trust

yellow bus
vicious nuns
early deaths
latin prayers

pools and sun
focused work
gender games
time to leave

Welcome Home

home from war
a joyous time
the family whole
a soldier blessed

old friends to see
old times relived
toasts are raised
a welcome home

suspicions rise
though not expressed
of subtle change
of darkness there

but all is well
until it's not
and then the war
erupts anew

for pain and fear
still burn within
and in a flash
more victims fall

but who's to blame
for what unfolds
the youth who left
or those he served

Refuge

there's a place
that I go
when the world
closes in

where the trees
and the grass
gently sway
in the breeze

where the noise
of humanity
fades
from the air

where my mind
is more clear
and peace
fills my soul

Just in Case

just in case
you're reading this
after all these years
after so much pain

I thought I'd say
what's in my soul
about that time
about those days

perhaps you searched
or maybe not
but now you're here
though far away

so let me send
my love and thanks
for what we had
for what we lost

and now I feel
a bit relieved
that now you know
just in case

Memories

fragments of time
stored in life
from birth to death
events engraved

most lie buried
forever lost
others laid bare
by joy or pain

the most intense
invade our soul
there to haunt
remaining days

Frozen Lake

in frigid light
I walked its shore
through crunch of snow
and biting wind

its surface glazed
with snow and ice
a flock of gulls
its only rise

I stopped to scan
the distant shore
where barren trees
in silence stood

and there I saw
a coyote stroll
his muzzle raised
to sniff the air

in search of prey
he stalked the reeds
where voles and mice
endure the chill

his search in vain
he stopped to rest
and caught my scent
across the lake

no sense of threat
he met my gaze
a shared respect
in winter's realm