Sabtu, 23 Juni 2012

Villanelle for Lost Dreams


Beneath the whirling tumult of sea
is the resting place of forgotten dreams.
But not everything below is dead,
they just cannot be touched by the sun
and what was once so vivid and true
is now a heartbeat beneath the sand.

Through the hourglass slips the sand
creating a beach for the pale green sea
making what is real no longer true
and in our waking hours, those dreams
of days when we could touch the sun
fall like gulls upon the shore, dead.

Where do we go when the past is dead?
Do we bury our heads under the sand
or turn our eyes up towards the sun?
Only in that white, bright light do we see
the weak heartbeat of lost dreams
and a north star to what is true.

Following the path that�s straight and true,
the waysides littered with our dead,
we behold the cost of our fever dreams
in shallow graves beneath hot sand.
All the cleansing of salted sea
cannot reverse the setting sun.

We plod along, daughter and son,
in search of dreams and love that�s true.
Each changing like tides on the sea
That only stop if we are dead.
Still we write our names in sand
And skip flat stones like they�re our dreams.

What is the meaning of these dreams,
That will one day implode like our sun,
If not an attempt to stay Time�s own sands
Or a question of what�s still true
That we sing to all our dead
Floating on burning ships to sea.

What we know to be true, is lost at sea
where dreams are as movable as sand.
We are not dead, yet we block the sun.

Senin, 05 Maret 2012

I always imagined I would know


I always imagined I would know
the exact moment when your heart stopped beating
whether it was a sudden illness
or some freak accident,
like getting hit by a cab while crossing 3rd Ave.
(You know nobody minds that stoplight)
In that instant, I would look up from my work

and put my hand on my chest.
I would know
because how could I not.
But the truth is

there will be no ethereal moment
where your soul passes through me

on its way to the next world.
I will not notice one less breath in the atmosphere

and the sky won�t seem darker than before.
Even mothers do not realize

when their sons have drowned in rivers
many miles away.
My hands won�t cease to work without you

and the sun will shine regardless.
A world without you tomorrow
is exactly the same as today,
But when I get that phone call
Or find you face down on the kitchen floor,
everything, oh yes, everything

Will never be the same
and I will imagine I always knew.

Kamis, 03 November 2011

rain in midtown

Just outside Grand Central Station,
I am pushing through the crowds
Between the walls of glass and stone
below a sky that's free of clouds.

When on my cheek I feel a drop,
away, I wipe it like a hair,
look in puzzlement at the sky
and continue on to Pershing Square.

I feel another droplet fall,
hit cold and wet upon my arm
like icy little pins they start
and each one fills me with alarm.

The sky still far and clear and blue
reflects its light on mirrored tower.
No one is reaching for umbrellas
in preparation for the coming shower.

Along Madison Avenue
the rain begins to pour.
It soaks through my ivory blouse
and chills me to my very core.

But on the street, not one looks up,
their heads and clothes stay dry.
As puddles forms inside my shoes
bike messengers and business men go by.

My hair is sticking to my face.
Water is collecting by my feet.
Make-up is running from my eyes
as I turn right on 38th St.

The flood begins on the corner
when the streetlights change to red.
Waves of water rush past cabs
and splash into the traffic ahead.

The rainwater rises but no one cares.
They walk unfazed below the tide
as I choke on liquid, gasp for breath
praying for the waters to subside.

I struggle to hold to the building's side
As the waters continue to rise.
My fingers slip, I fall below,
hands reaching up to clear blue skies.

Below the surface, the water's cold
it's iciness numbs my fear.
I close my eyes to fall asleep.
I hope nobody finds me here.

Senin, 10 Oktober 2011

Changing (Leaves)


In moves the crispness of autumn nights,
leaving behind yellow days
for the heavy scent of decaying leaves
and unanswered questions.

Ruby maples shed their weight
to be naked in time for winter�s frost.
Aspen leaves skitter across the pavement
to give me a golden road to nowhere.

Arid land turns muddy earth
under clear blue but chilly skies.
Does the old Oak fear change?
I�m too scared to ask.


Rabu, 02 Maret 2011

my life in places where I've woken up

[South Balboa Drive]
Morning has passed my sleepy face
As the warm place on my chest starts to purr
I better not get up just yet
Lest I awaken this gentle bundle of fur.


[Lake Galilee Road]
My eyes creep open at sunlight.
Another misty, hazy dawn breaks on the lake.
Looking through the dirty glass
A peaceful moment, while no one is awake.


[Great Portland Street]
Body awakes but the mind still sleeps
From honking horns beyond the apple tree limbs.
New day walking the crescents, mews
Chasing my every wanderlust, traveler whims.


[Union Street]
He always wakes up before me
I lie under the quilts and watch the curtain flow.
Streams of light feed the plants
And I feel warmth here in spite of the snow.

[28th Street]
I hear people shouting in the street
But it�s still a quiet start for a Manhattan day
I count the bricks on the wall
A home of love and dreams, but underpay.

Minggu, 05 Desember 2010

the rest is silence

with wings outstretched
the setting sun can turn a raven blue
feathers tangled in branches that cradle
after that fateful plunge from the sky

black claws let go
throw your head back and laugh
at the fly that eats your eyes
at the maggots in your belly
at the inevitable decay

birds are meant to stay in the sky
but we all are worms in the end.





Kamis, 28 Oktober 2010

well, he�s not here though
and i am
palm on my lower back
he pulls me to him to whisper toxins
no one will ever know

i know
i�ll always remember
no

but that second
i feel my sex electric
his hard persuasion against me
bait for sinners
pounding in my breast
more whispers
to get his lips closer to mine
his tongue inside
my hunger is wet

lust he speaks with foreign tongue
i ache for warmth
surrounding me and filling me
i will tell no one

i would tell
i can keep no secrets
no

but in that instant
gratification pulses in my mind
the seed of infidelity
i fondle with the thought
and save it for myself tonight
no
i am a tease for temptation

Senin, 10 Mei 2010

Untitled



Walking home
I saw a baby bird at my feet
Never seeing
Dead.

Without touching
I knew instinctively how he would feel.
No feathers
Fetus.

Wondering time
I thought how long his corpse would stay
Nearing decay
Perish.

Waiting there
I heard a grackle scream in an evergreen
No mother
Mourns.

Jumat, 23 Januari 2009

Lullaby

Love, lay down your head
And hear the sighing seas
Of naked crimson in the sheets
The waning sun agrees

The land unfolds its blanket
of warm and dark in me
With this lullaby for quiet
I bribe the birds in every tree

A harvest moon fades
Pushing light behind the breeze
Tomorrow we move again
The honey and the bees

So kiss goodnight, Love
and lay down close to me
Loose our thoughts in slumber
Find our dreams in we.

Sleep within this shelter made
of love a guarantee
Wear a promise �round your neck
A life, a home, a key.

Jumat, 28 November 2008

The Sounds of Snow

The snow makes a sound as it hits the ground
If we could only listen.
All at once it sounds like the wind
A blowing silencing hymn
Just like a thousand mothers
Whispering to their babies �hush�

Yes, the snow makes a sound when it hits the ground
But only for an instant.
All alone it sounds just like your blood
Swishing through your veins
And the rhythm of the snow�s song
Is your heartbeat�s thumping in your ears.

I believe the snow makes a sound as it hits the ground
But only the broken-hearted can hear it.
Its sounds like your lover�s breath
after the last time you kissed him.
It sounds like the tears being made in your eye
It reverberates in your soul;
That is the sound of snow.

Rabu, 30 Juli 2008

My poem

My poem is unfinished.
The lines don't rhyme
and the meters all wrong
but it is still a work in progress.
I'm still looking for the words,
trying to find the right meaning
to say a lifetime.
So maybe the end is unknown
and the middle is unwritten
but I think I know just where to start
Here...
is were it begins.
A life of prose to grow with me
from these humble beginnings.
My poem is unfinished.

Selasa, 29 Juli 2008

For M

Road lays out in miles
across seemingly endless land.
Distance yawns between you, love
and my outstretched hand.

Days for your voice to reach me
when you call out my name.
Without your smile each morning
the sun never shines the same.

Over mountains, rivers and lakes
I wait for you to bridge the gaps
Swim the rivers and the lake
Walk across the snowy caps.

To beat the miles you must recall
to love when I'm not there
Kiss the rain when it falls,
breath the wind like it's my air

Feel the sun like my embrace
Watch the moon glow like my eyes
Know it's love and not proximity
that truly binds the ties.

So though the miles seem daunting
and the days creep slowly by
We will be together again
and greet each other with a sigh.

Minggu, 27 April 2008

Jealousy's Fool

Bite your lip when she walks by
and to hear you speak of her
I start to imagine the scene
without me.

I coy smile from her
and whisper in her ear
and a toss of her fair hair
You're heart divided

or your heart was never mine.

I see the gleam in your eye
when you make her laugh
and she blushes now
but without me:

You tell her you love her
with that same gleam.
Kiss her neck
sweeter than you kiss me.
You will soon forget me

or you never knew me at all.

Lower my eyes to your glow
I don't know who you see
when you look at me anymore.
Because without me

You hold her in bliss
and breath in the smell of her hair
and laugh at that other girl.
You either love her already

or I am jealousy's fool.

Rabu, 16 April 2008

Please, please

A puzzle of flesh and liquid
the mystery of my own body.
To hold me from knowing
what is happening within.
Growing inside?
I�m not ready.
My life barely blooming
with self-actualization not yet realized
Fill in the blanks.
I don�t want to throw it away
I should have been more careful
I know
But please, please, please
Not yet.

Selasa, 11 Maret 2008

In a Perfect World

In a perfect world
You would never be out of reach.
Without telepathy I could read your thoughts
And they would be perfectly like mine.
Each morning you would wake up wrapped around me
And my breath would smell fresh
And last night you didn�t snore.
Your kisses would taste like ripe cherries
And I would never miss your lips.
In the middle of the day, you would call
Because we have nothing else to do but love each other.
That�s our job and it pays well.
I would never tell you my secrets because I would have none.
You would never have to forgive me
Because I am perfect
And I would never have to cry
Because you are too.
Instead of waiting, I would have found you sooner
And you would love me forever.
In a perfect world
I would have never cursed us with perfection.

One Morning

One morning
I woke up and I loved you
The date and time remain unclear
But on that ripe red morning
You were the Sun.

One morning
I told you why I fell in love
It was your warmth
Your beams engulfed me
And banish the bitter night.

One morning
I asked you to forgive me.
I still have dark patches in my soul.
Places that remain cold
Even in the heat of your summer.

One morning
I said I am sorry
I can never give you everything,
But know I love you.
I have known since that morning.

One evening
Imagine my surprise
When this bright day ends
And you creep over the hills
To shine on other souls.

I should have never been so greedy.

Minggu, 03 Februari 2008

Supernova

We jumped on the bed to put stars in the sky,
And made them read, �I love you.�
Your liquid eyes held the northern hemisphere
Reflecting my glowing ceiling of plastic suns,
Our world rotates around them.
My love is a supernova,
Growing and gleaming and imploding inside
Fuel for new fires to burn in our hearts,
And black holes to store affection.
Plastic lasts forever
And the stars in the sky are light-years away.
Why would I want to wish on them?
By the time I see them
They could be dead,
But the dying ones shine the brightest.

Senin, 31 Desember 2007

Dusk

The snow laden trees look best at dusk
When the headlights bring out the glitter in white
and my eyes fail to see the branches
broken by the weight of wet ivory.
Each snowflake, unique and small,
was too much for the tree to bear.
Sometimes you can hear them cracking
but never at dusk.

Sabtu, 08 Desember 2007

13 Ways to Look at a Button

I.
Among the leather of coats
A button
Holds it all together

II.

Alone
The only one who sees me
is a button
the eye of a rag doll.

III.
Napoleon�s Army
Lost to the Russian cold
Their tin buttons disintegrating

IV.
Resting on the dirty ground
A lost button
With a frayed thread

V.

In my pocket
I mistake a button for a coin

VI.

The only thing left to remind her of him
is a button
from his favorite dress shirt.
She cries.

VII.

Late last summer he fell in love
With her sun kissed button nose

VIII.

Answers linger beyond the door.
Locked.
The impermeable code of buttons.

IX.

On or Off
A heavy choice
Made so often by buttons

X.

O, citizens of earth
Loathing and fanaticism
The end of the world
Is just a button press away.

XI.
A small treasure
A child finds a misplaced
Button.

XII.

The wind whispers �shh.�
Somewhere
A button fails.

XIII.
It was early morning
And no one has ever sung
A song for buttons.

Minggu, 18 November 2007

Saturation Adoration

Dew clings like kisses on green leaves
Your love is moisture to my soil.
All summer long there was a drought
And I withered with pure sun
Waiting for you to come again; to saturate my heart.

With every single drop you rain
I soak it up like affection.
Eagerly I consume your fallen love
As the water rises higher
Remembering a time before you; my soul evaporating.

Rain clouds cover up the sun
But still I drink the rain.
Submerged in water, I beg for more
Liquid flooding out my roots.
No need for light; I have you, my sweet precipitation.

Soak me in waters deep
Inundate me with adoration.
Engulf me in the flood
Immerse me in passion
Love me until I die
Drowning has never felt so good.