New Poems

"safe"

Six fever dreams later I shrug to her
My arm still in a sling, bent against my mouth, wretched
a shadow suspended in the doorway, speaking to me
Are you coming or going?
I stare at her glossy eyed, eyes dry weathered from tears
tired of crying-unable to sleep until she hears our son is okay and
Yes, yes he is he'll be okay OK
I assure her and myself, butterflies in my right foot kicking the elft
Traffic accident. What??? He's okayy...
Like a whisper the precint captain says.
One of the lucky ones. You should see the others.
A mangled body voyaged thru Satan's dishwasher
my boy my boy mybody and my boy.
The shadow moves, from hospital to kindergarten to kitchen to bedroom to car to highway to hospital to x-ray machine to CAT scan.
Listen to my son sleep.
He's been sleeping for four years, six months, and 17 days.


Prayers for Rain (a Woman)


I prayed for rain and found a woman
who had pieces of earth between her toes
hummingbird tattoos engraved in her palms,
a fingerprinted history of cynicism and grace
a kiss of wine-lavenders nestled in her hair so everyone knew it was her

I prayed for rain and found a woman
a white gown, with turquoise pendants all around her waist
dancing under the attentive avocado trees who bowed their heads as if to say
"Dear lady, to what do owe this pleasure?"
Her pink sun umbrella twirls
as do her lips
which smile to the joke only she understands

I prayed for rain and found a woman
We rode motorcyles to Michigan [she drove]
then tasted fine wine in Hungary
our heads nodding ludicrously to reds, whites, and all things in between
When the waiter wasn't looking I stole a kiss and you laughed and said stop and kissed me again and that's when I knew