DESIRE

He sometimes desires the kind of day

that dances with you from dawn

till the sky is smoky with stars.

Or sometimes he just desires

the brown skin of a Snickers bar,

or the feel of a soft new sneaker on his foot,

or the fullness of a Sunday

free of a sense of duty.

Mostly, though, he desires her hands in his,

her whole life leaning into his

as they lie back in this soothing universe

FRESHNESS

“Dorothea's entrance was the freshness of morning.”

-- George Eliot, Middlemarch

And so is his new friend.

She sows the seeds of newness

when she enters a room,

when windows suddenly

seem spanking clean

and all the walls

look lighthearted and spotless.  

He’s always surprised

when she comes to visit,

the way the shingles shine

as she walks to the door,

the way the rooms

seem to refurbish themselves

for her presence.

.

HOW CAN HE KEEP FROM SINGING?

He doesn’t know how

he can keep from singing.

He sings in the strangest places –

at his sunny desk,

in rain-washed streets,

in the produce section

among lettuces and onions.

He lets the music

make him merry,

whatever the world is doing.

While death does its drumming

all around him,

he sings the way wind blows,

because he has to,

because who can stop the wind?

THESE TWO, by Jaimie Johansen

She grew up in Texas,

taking her time with life,

holding love

in her little hands,

looking for wisdom

wherever it was waiting.

Now, in New England

with a new friend,

she follows stars.

Together they take the paths

the stars prepare for them.

If you see these two,

you will also see starlight.  

QUIET MORNING

"Morning Light", pastel, by Karen Margulis

It was a quiet morning --

just the call of a few birds

bringing back the daylight,

just the shaking of branches

as a wind did its early work.

Wherever he was

was wonderful –

upstairs with the silence

of his books,

in the kitchen with a cup of coffee,

outside as the sunlight

looked shyly through the trees.

All was quiet –

this fresh, carefree day

and his happy-go-lucky life.

SILVER AND GOLD

"Stars over Casco Bay", oil, by Elizabeth Fraser

He sat in silence
among the silent stones
on the patio.

A new night was

washing over his world

with miles of stars,

his friends and fellow-travelers.

Tell me a tale,

he asked them,

of silver and the flowing

of friendship,

and six stars sang

of Ham and a friend

with silver feelings

and golden goodness

in her eyes.