oh beaten path

worn down by the journey of life

lite by the changing moon and constant sun

oh beaten path

laid bare by the rains of many storms

stilled under the weight of blanketing snows

oh beaten path

your way only the ancestors have known

with contentment and regret none could change

oh beaten path

mine now is to follow into the shared horizon

leaving fresh steps over my time's muddled footprint

07/08/2023

the hump of the thump

went down then up

grinding Erma’s innards

with gallops and gaits

at a tap dancer’s rate

her ride was not a winner

“this jaunt's off pace

I’m not built to race

or bounce and toss about”

but what Erma had bought

not the safari she thought

and her ass paid off with blisters

06/13/2023

no one held a hand as they depart

last beats and breaths their own

taken as they always wanted to go

independent of life's busy throes

forever free from our daily pains

a spring returned in their steps

stars again twinkle from tired eyes

salutations, laughter now lullabies

to sleep in a heaven's eternal dream

welcomed home by generations passed

missed here in a heart's sad song

to them a turn, a wave and gone

06/13/2023

her pulled pork fell from the invited heights

left with opened toed sandals and scuffed shoes

squeezed lemons aided in already dyed soiled duds

as she now hunkers alone, toasts her winter picnic blues

a napkin painted in scarlet lipstick and barbeque sauce

scurries in a hurry across polished hardwood floor

the good silver and mother's mother's fine china

hid store bought coleslaw from her daddy's whore

beans sent with brown sugar and spent bacon strips

let off steam as the alabaster crock turns to noon

buns once nestled in a towel from a whickered home

lay buttered, half bit and discarded way too soon

the wine discussed, chilled on a storied window sill

holds the interest of pigeons, the wind and the snow

cheesecake picked late from a closed baker's empty case

holds court in the frig with olives and her eating crow

a daisy embroidered table cloth held for celebrating

folds and crumples the courses into a trashy world

the pulled red replaces the sweetness of a butchered pig

as out into the cold sunshine a winter picnic is hurled

04/30/2023

fine the faux response

a pause in the answer

no question, why the hesitation

more an inquiry, less of health

fine the reply excepted

suitable for our circumstance

no thought of a mortal's end

both off as feathers in a hurricane

fine the desired effect

blushed and honed for eternally

pressed and laid and posed

a finale displayed openly

fine our last debate

though his reply halted in my time

but his destination i too will have

hopefully though, forever is fine

04/27/2023

for Joe RIP 04/25/2023

who knows in which way was one

but a heartbeat would grow to two

as time or a right place might be three

only in terms one chose long before

05-06-2022

the famous death held the stage

then spent steeds hung wearied heads

riders of the overland shrugged, wept

as tolls paid echoed through the berg

wails rose from the blended murmur

children hushed and gossip faded

comforting arms held before the earth

a young bride blinked soon a widow

sheriff or marshal, time and rank forgot

gun pulled on the wild powder keg

flames burst, one a hair behind the other

gasps as one stumbled, knelt and fell

a Doc came forth, chastising, no need

six shooter kicked beyond a cold hand

pocket watches click open and then shut

paces resumed, the west wonders why

dust to dust turns to a scarlet crude

holstered again as springs compress

a lash, a lurch, life to hoof and wheel

Lincoln’s held the stage, his that day

04/07/2022

her pulled pork fell from the invited heights

left with opened toed sandals and scuffed shoes

squeezed lemons aided in already dyed soiled duds

as she now hunkers alone, toasts her winter picnic blues

a napkin painted in scarlet lipstick and barbeque sauce

scurries in a hurry across polished hardwood floor

the good silver and mother's mother's fine china

hid store bought coleslaw from her daddy's whore

beans sent with brown sugar and spent bacon strips

let off steam as the alabaster crock turns to noon

buns once nestled in a towel from a whickered home

lay buttered, half bit and discarded way too soon

the wine discussed, chilled on a storied window sill

holds the interest of pigeons, the wind and the snow

cheesecake picked late from a closed baker's empty case

holds court in the frig with olives and her eating crow

a daisy embroidered table cloth held for celebrating

folds and crumples the courses into a trashy world

the pulled red replaces the sweetness of a butchered pig

as out into the cold sunshine a winter picnic is hurled

02/12/2022

distaste for a past

nullified with biased pens

dipped in a woke ink

erasing changes naught

scrubbing away the canvas

will paint know future

teach to understand

the paths we traveled to here

include the missteps

dreamers left hardships

to horizons others owned

they wanted better

time need apologize

eras send condolences

past beg forgiveness

I know naught their years

the why’s lost with the seasons

reasons only theirs

the present now leaves

to a past others will judge

with future knowledge

owning their mistakes

banes of civilizations

the present’s weight

the oil can now dry

eons of wheels been greased

some too with spilled blood

tear down what you wish

quieting the questioners

with shouts of hatred

11/26/2021

oh say can you see

…..hold it, we don’t want you to see that

oh say can you

….,whoa, nada, somethings we won’t allow

oh, say can

…. .nope that is not a position we agree with

oh, say

…..say what, that is too controversial and will offend someone

oh,

…. that’s better, you seem in distress let us help you…..

11/18/2021