about the death of an old dogdying alone by the side of a road,growling softly as he thinks ofthat calico cat he so despisedand loved to chase,remembering the last stroke behind his earsby the homeless old womanwho lived in the underpass. My chatbot muse pauses briefly,then out pours a poemabout a quantum poochwho exists in […]
The Burping Seal A lone Tupperware with sky blue lid, it lives on in my kitchen, a reminderof all it once held—loving leftovers of Mom’s greasy kugel or kielbasa,mincemeat cookies, coleslaw or apple pie. Its skin is worn soft from fifty yearsof washing and handling. Back and forthit went from her place to mine. I
I stare at the photographof a bare-chested 18-year-oldtrying to look brutish,crouching as ifready to pounce,projecting his masculinitylest the image fade. Our cells are no longer the same,but he still lives inside me,staring out fromhis secret chamber,where in one corneris a small tablewhere he praysand gazes upwardat Jesus in agony—a votive candle flickers. What would we
Playing chess with my computer,I struggle to relearnwhat, where, and how to moveand now all I see is squares—bathroom and floor tiles, crossword puzzles,the checkered blouse of the lady in front of me—as pawns plod forward in dull straight paths,rooks zoom about in their rows and columns,bishops whiz diagonally back and forth,while king steps cautiouslyone
My new poem “The Woman in the Window” was just published in the Winter 2023 issue of Sky Island Journal. You can read it here https://www.skyislandjournal.com/issues#/issue-23-winter-2023/
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Can you read this? Most days, my words look more like tracks of a sandpiper skittering along the edge of the sea. But I see them clearly now—o blessed words! There’s so much I want to say before they leave me again and I must go back to that inarticulate cell, as memories play out
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I am pleased to annouce that my fourth poetry book Shopping Cart Dreams has just been published by Kelsay Books. A full-length collection offering an eclectic range of poems ranging from serious to quirky and absurd, this is my most ambitious work yet. Though mostly free verse, it includes a number of prose, ekphrastic, and
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