Poetry

. Learning Curves In classrooms smeared with monkey poop__Where questions meet deceit,She heard she came from soupy gloop---__A slab of soulless meat.Her teachers preached from thrones of bones---__They...

. Boomerang In the chronicles of hist’ry There we see a vast array Of malicious, scheming tricksters Who themselves became the prey, Thus, confirming what the Psalmist In his wisdom once had said Of the...

. The Unknown God ---Paul’s Address at the Areopagus (Acts 17:22-31) My dear Athenians, this I surveilled While passing by: you’re quite religious men! I scanned what you are worshiping, and then I stopped...

. Ode to The New York Times O, soulless source of leftist propaganda Known still throughout the world as “The Gray Lady”--- You promulgate destructive memoranda From sources Soros-like---depraved and...

. How Many Homes? ---January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires Twelve thousand lost, from stricken memories more Schools, churches, meeting places, shops and homes Of residents and others moved away, Bereaved of...

. Winter Song Hymen, Venus, Graces three, _save me lest I wither like some sap-sucked blasted tree; Hymen, Venus, Graces three, come and set my soul-song free: _come, come here, come hither. Hymen, Venus,...

. Another Old Myth The Ancient One warned Noah's doom was near. Since men possessed with greed kept spilling blood, That cataclysmic rain would soon appear. So Noah built an ark before the flood. No matter now...

. Vernal Equinox Germans call this season “frühling.” Spaniards name it “primavera.” Welshmen say the term is “gwanwyn.” Shetland trawlers go with “voar,” so Let’s resolve this with a...

. Equinox Blues Welcome to spring! The last snow may be past,_and bright blue frames the parting clouds.The sun rides longer in the sky, at last,_than lost to night’s slow–ebbing shrouds. The weather’s...

. My Backyard  . The Campfire Elisha loves to build a fire; His dog is near, she loves to watch For birds that she will try to catch. They each pursue their own desire--- One by her leaps, one with a...

. The Tundra Swan Its full and light and interfolding feathers __Number ten thousand plus, No wonder that the tundra swan out-weathers __With less than little fuss __The brisk Antarctic breeze, Yet half of...

. I Failed I failed so dramatically most early days I failed horribly in most critical ways I failed to use schooling at each different age I failed in the waste of my talents each stage I failed with some...

. Reflections on a Visit to Saint Augustine With each step up the old Castillo wall I pray The hurricane will detour east past Grand Bahama. If windborne flooding comes, it can’t be held at bay--- St....

. Guitar music for "Sheebag Sheemore" performed by Jeff Eardley. . The Session Monday at the Shamrock Inn, So, the session does begin, Rosin up the fiddle’s bow, Get in tune and off we go. Pipes and...

. St. Patrick’s Day, 2025 While swathed in swirls of green, some raise a glass Of dark elixir topped with sheeny cream. Some twirl through Derry streets and Kerry grass In dreams ablaze with leprechauns that...

. Simple Simon Responds to Sayings of Captain Obvious English literature tends to be wordy. Many tricks are exceedingly dirty. On a bright sunny day the whole sky appears bluish. All the teachers that pray in...

. Opening extract from Canto 9 DoorWay: Arriving in Aquarius The poet, wrenched from love’s bliss with Seraphina in Canto 8, is carried onward by the Butterfly to his final destination. His journey leads him...

. A Summer Evening The sky begins to cloak its face, Removing every streak of red. Above, two weary flyers trace The way back to their bough-held bed. A boy, awash with joy, returns Soil-vested from a...

. Beyond All Words Can words alone, in skill-scribed shape or form— Inspired by muse or writ with feathered plume— Express the stark-dark depth of death-dread storm? Or fell despair of bleak-black hopeless...

. Eternally Grounded There’s up and down, forward and back, Of opposites we have no lack. We have the dark and we have light, And we have left as well as right. We’ll choose to fight or run away, Keep...

. Mussolini's Minions ---Segesta, 2012 Entranced, we wander round the temple site.The hot Sicilian sun beats down. I’m frayed,now seek the parking lot's uncertain shade.My brother John’s nearby, though not...

. A Fisherman’s Life The fronds of the palm trees sway in the breeze. A lone tiny boat is bounced by the seas. The sunset is orange, reflection is brown. The sailboat is cruising, searching for ground. Its...

. Cherry Tree One summer day not long ago a man planted a tree, With tender love and patience he invested energy. He poured his hope and faith into the little budding leaves, For by this time next year he...

. Blind Watchmaker A blind watchmaker tinkered for billions of yearswithout blueprints for making his intricate gears.So, he failed many times but got up when he felland was shocked when he made not a watch,...

. Pumpkin Spice The scent of Autumn lingers in the air With hints of ginger, cinnamon, and clove; At 42nd Street and Herald Square, On 8th Street, Bleecker, Christopher, and Grove--- Each crowded sidewalk,...

. The Core of War a pantoum The trickster charms and arms both sides--- He funds the ally and the foe. His hype unites and it divides. He’s oh so anti… also pro. He funds the ally and the foe. His crimson...

. Of Elizabeth Bishop Ms. Bishop is one able–eyed observer;her vision is acute, that’s plain to see.Staring at her, I doubt I could unnerve her,though from the page she sometimes unnerves me.The variations...

. An Ode to a Hymn “Like aught that for its grace may be Dear, and yet dearer for its mystery” ---Percy Shelley in “Hymn to Intellectual Beauty” Cathedral with its prayer sings homily _About an ancient...

. Kitchen-Sink Musings It’s International Women’s Day today But as a flunkee in biology I’m told I’m far from qualified to pay Fair tribute to such morphing majesty. As I’m a wombed and bosomed...

. Nishijin Weaving In the tranquil heartThere is no scattering ofBlossoms once gathered. ―Satomura Jōha, master of linked verse The shining fabrics of nobilityDemand the planning of a pattern first.The...

. Gossiping Hinges Some think we hinges only squeak __because we seek __an oily drop __to make us stop, but hinges gossip day and night, __our message, quite __distinctive. We, __with raucous glee, say 'hi' to...

. Craft ---a conversation between Beauty and Productivity "You don't have time for this, you know." "Says who?" "That daily checklist down there in your tool bar, that's who says!" "Calm down. You need to...

. A Token of Espousal Sister Elisabetta Dardinelli Speaks Concerning the Token of Espousalof Saint Catherine de’ Ricci (1522-1590) Dixit mihi Dominus meus: Ne timeas, filia: Non rapiet tequisquam de manu...

. Ode to the Sun . I Oh first and longest-lasting of my friends, Helen Aurelia, how can I express Through this guitar o’er which my finger bends, And these fine words, each wanting in finesse, The warmth...

. Ashes Before the Lenten ashes fade and thin, I might remind myself of those regrets More earnest than a taste for sweets Or bad TV and that my conscience meets With frightening ease at times far greater...

. Seeing the Forest Listen to the rustle of the foliage in the forest, _And note the motes of pollen floating there; Muscle headlong through the brush and never feel embarrassed _If you get whiplashed on your...

. Give Praise for These Days of Old Age You’re up in the morning, you moan and you groan, You’re feeling the grinding of bone against bone. When your knees have embarked on a life of their own, _Then give...

. The Greatest Time of Fatherhood I know that I’m supposed to say The finest time is now—today. And with all their accomplishments, That would indeed make lots of sense. And yet the greatest time of...

. A Brief Return Hey, little girl. I’ve come to check on you;To hear your voice, to see your face anew.Can it be true? Has it been seven years?You’ve grown up nicely since I went away.I’m proud to see...

. We Already May Be in Purgatory The Peterson Postulate "What if this life is just a test so we can become better people?" ---The White Lotus HBO TV series What if God has sent us all to Purgatory? It’s our...