Sunday, September 10, 2023

Ripe Berries


Berries.
Blackberries.
It's all about the sensuous 
trickle-stream flow
of the chin-staining juice running
right through the thorns to make
a pathway straight to your open heart.
Can't think about the snare of spiky canes 
when the passionate purple goo is
dripping so seductively into 
your waiting mouth with a
taste that obliterates all judgment,
shatters all restraints and
opens minds and hearts, legs and arms 
even as you protest that your
well-ordered life is being hijacked
through the brambles to
God knows where . . .
(But oh, it tastes so damn good)
Squeeze the fruit from that scruffy, danger-filled shrub  
and see what happens. . . 
and what does not happen.
You will not, of course, proceed accordingly.

Ah, bright-eyed innocence of youth and hormones.
I embraced you with gusto but don't miss you a bit
because so many years later
I have finally mastered 
the exquisitely delicious art 
of walking and eating blackberries
at the same time. 

_______________________________________

Moras Maduras


Moras.
Zarzamoras.
Es la seducción 
goteo-chorrito-flujo
del jugo mancha-mandíbula corriendo
de entre las espinas a hacer
un sendero directamente a tu corazón abierto.
No puedes pensar en los tallos espinosos
cuando el apasionado néctar violeta
gotea a tu boca abierta con un sabor que
oblitera todo juicio,
destruye todo control y
abre mentes y corazones, piernas y brazos
aunque protestas el desvío de tu vida 
por las zarzas hasta Dios sabe dónde . . .
(Ay, pero sabe tan rico)
Aprieta la fruta de ese arbusto 
desaliñado y peligroso y
verás lo que pasa . . .
y lo que no pasa.
Claro que no vas a proceder prudentemente.

Ay, inocencia luminosa de la juventud y las hormonas.
Te abracé con gusto, pero no te extraño ni un poquito
porque después de tantos años
por fin he dominado el arte delicioso 
de caminar y comer moras
a la vez.

Thursday, August 17, 2023

On the #1 Bus



Whatever happened to unobstructed views?
Who decided it was a good idea to slap advertisements on bus windows?
Will it ever stop raining?
As the #1 bus trundled down 6th Avenue
on a soakingly grim Sunday,
passengers were few,
the air was thick with moist, shared breath,
and I had questions . . .
questions that were abruptly interrupted
when the bus lurched to a stop 
at 6th and Stevens.
The doors swung open, and our driver announced
that there was a vivid double-rainbow
hanging just behind us.
We should all hop off to take a look, he said.
And so it was that an improbable Holy Trinity gathered that day:
a silver-crowned crone, a testy teen with a nose ring of gold,
and our mild-mannered driver ~
transformed for an instant into our High Priest of Awe ~
all standing next to the #1 bus on 6th Avenue,
savoring the unexpected,
the fleeting hues of mystery,
the arcing brilliance of colors split . . .
before they dissolved back into the drear
and the bus ride continued
on a Sunday that was no longer grim.

Sunday, June 18, 2023

Ordinary Mystery


So many years later
Daddy's roses still grow wild
on the old back fence.
Adorning my backpack
as I wander over to Trader Joe's
they make the elusive mystery of eternal life
a bit more accessible.

Father's Day 2023

_______________________________

misterio ordinario


Tantos años después
las rosas de Papá crecen silvestres
en la cerca de atrás.
Adornando mi mochila
mientas camino a Trader Joe's
hacen que el misterio elusivo de la vida eterna
sea un poco más accesible.

Día de los Padres 2023