More Gogyohka Poetry

smoke from fire
and southwestern dust
paints
a wicked veil
and smothers my soul


orange sherbet
sun sinks
tucks its
creamy tail
into the horizon


mockingbird
lands on nearby branch
watches me
wind up
the garden hose


jumpy sparrow
turns and flitters
at every angle
on a
King Pine branch


blinding sun punctures
my pupils
sunspots
dance
at every blink

Card

A friend sent me a birthday card.
It touched my soul. The mint green
envelope bordered with butterflies
and flowers -- a young, barefooted girl
graced with leaves for wings
and a leaf apron tied around her waist.
A white pouch filled with strawberries
hung from her shoulder. She wore a
brown top and checkered, funnel-shaped
skirt, stood on a small, grassy hill, bent
forward with her garden kettle,
watering strawberries in yellow pots.

Inside - expressions - white over sea green.
Imagine two newspapers folded into sailors' hats,
like sailboats, and horizontal squiggle motifs
implying waves. A message wished me
to have dreams that sailed far and wide,
and may the child in my heart stay forever –
it's these words taking shape, moving
in hopeful directions, that mattered.

Oldies

A relic, old school, traditionalist,
a dinosaur. I must be ancient when...
xxxxxxxxxxmy preference is oldies –
like classic soul power,
early rock and roll, doo-wap,
post second-war blues, gospel, jazz.
Four and five-part harmonies –
horn-driven, guitars, funky saxophones,
walking bass shuffles, call and response,
turnarounds, improvisations.
xxxxxxxxxxDigs deep into my veins.
Carves itself into my brain. Mesmerized.
Wanting more. A habit.
Like a feisty old fish caught
on a hook but I can't get away.
I'm dancing on reeled-in line,
satisfying the pits of my everything
xxxxxxxxxxand loving it.