Hoary frill Of albino thorns On brittle twigs Spear tips of white Serrate blades of grass Breath uncurls Thin vapor lingers A translucent scarf Stillness No bird chirp No dog bark Soft earth turned to stone Needles of cold Press deeper into skin Pale sky Cloudless Eyes slapped by Blinding white sun Brings a thin … Read moreWalking on the Moon
I want to open a restaurant. Where? Halfway between Boise and Lucky Peak. What’s the name? The Crow Inn. So, it’s a motel? No. That’s sort of confusing. Maybe you’re right. I’ll call it Ben’s Crow Inn. What’s the specialty? Specialty? Yes. Why do people stop? I’m going to serve clams. Clams? In the desert? … Read moreRisky Business
Human rights influencer Forty-thousand overnight likes Should be more Harder to stay fit Since she turned twenty-two Sponsors Amnesty International The Red Cross As demanding as Any for-profit corporation If nobody sees it Nobody gets the help Her agent says Share the tragedies But skim the disaster Exhibit that beach body In exotic Though tragic … Read moreThumbs Up for Human Rights
It was mid-December, and the morning announcements spoke of a lunch hour pep rally for the upcoming basketball game. They also mentioned the judging of the annual Christmas Door Decorating Contest at the end of the week in which each homeroom decorated their door to reflect a Christmas theme. My homeroom was choir, and my … Read morePep Rally Poison
1918 Midwestern farm bank Greek revival In white brick Oversized windows Brightened the space Until in 1929 Everything went dark Decades later Out of bankruptcy limbo A ready return to the marketplace A barber college Then an upholstery shop A daycare A carpet store A judo studio A vape shop Until in the go-go Subprime … Read moreThe Indignity of Aging
When the meteor hit The deep earth didn’t notice When the ice age came The deep earth yawned When we finally consume everything on the surface The deep earth will care as little As an elephant Threatened by a flea Before the first sea sponge Wriggled in the mud Trillions and trillions of microbes Basking … Read moreUnder My Skin
Firm flesh Papery skin Dropped in the crisper For an eventual Soup or sauté Rolls to the back Forgotten Cold Dark Waiting Flesh softens Sprouts appear Weeks pass The onion a time buoy Finally discovered I snap awake In realization I need more onions
One size too big My vintage down jacket Avocado corduroy Mustard yellow lining We call it Ugly Coat A family favorite from When coats stood up To cigarette burns Or laying on the road To chain the tires Collar and sleeves Still hemlock green Right handwarmer pocket Worn through from A former set of keys … Read moreUnbeautiful Embrace
Every seven years Cells turn over And a newer me emerges Reborn Reincarnated Recycled Scars persist Like a darned sock The stitching smooths And blends A remnant No escaping the mileage Erosion Can carve canyons Memories fade So slowly The glacier is long forgotten Only the effects remain Am I still me When all the … Read moreLost and Found
From the “Common American Phrasebook for Intelligencer Personnel,” issued to Soviet agents targeting U.S. citizens, recovered when the drunken girlfriend of a low-ranking Soviet Embassy diplomat dropped a diplomatic satchel on the airport tarmac and high winds scattered the documents, later recovered by the FBI. [*translated from Russian] “Americans speak in confusing phrases they call … Read moreThe Never Lost in Translation Department