commencement

I remember
when you told me
that he was the one.
the sparkle in your eye
that was never there for me.
how happy I
pretended to be
when you blushed
and thanked me
for my poems
and handed them
back to me
wishing me
the best of luck.

definition

re-orged: to be blinded and to perpetually roll a giant boulder up a mountain to the peak, only to have it inevitably roll back down the mountain into the valley.

sunrise

sunrise
my newborn daughter’s
                                 smile

for Rebekah — born 27 April 1983

signs of spring

signs of spring —
the old car’s
new paint job

restless night

	restless night — the dog’s paw on my shoulder
restless night — the dog snores in my ear

sunrise

sunrise —
her lipstick
on an empty shot glass

was it something I said?

was it something I said?
a cardinal retreats
to the back of the tree

was it something I said?
rain clouds gather
above the horizon

was it something I said?
a piece of cheese taken
from the mouse trap again

azalea blossoms

azalea blossoms —
my daughter asks a question
about diamonds

Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday —
chasing a rabbit
away from the tulips

finally spring

finally spring —
the scent of her hair

spring cleaning

spring cleaning —
our next-door neighbor
is smoking again

self-referential black holes and other astral phenomena

during a two and-an-half hour meeting this morning a Senior Vice President decried the fact that engineers like me spent far too much time in meetings to be productive.

police sirens

police sirens...
stepping over
a dead pigeon

April showers

April showers —
let me help you out
of that wet dress

lunch

lunch with my sons a wish- filled sandwich

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday —
a homeless man
gives me directions

twilight

twilight —
my teenaged son’s
peach fuzz

spring rain

spring rain —
a Red Sox cap
on the wine bottle

red light

red light —
the dog sniffs a crack
in the sidewalk

***@#$%^&***!!!

first week of April —
I invent another word
for snow

spring snow

spring snow —
the poet hunkers down
at the end of the bar

daylight savings

daylight savings —
I’d love to have
that hour back...

writer's block

writer’s block —
a kite
caught in a tree

April Fool's Day

April Fool’s Day —
will anyone come
to our poetry reading?

April Fool’s Day —
the mockingbird
calls my name