Chemo

a black bitter pill
taken with a glass of bile-
so hard to swallow

november morn-
the push is over
now I taste salt.

Pittsburgh

just another day
thoughts and prayers for the dead while
no one does a thing

a quiet morning-
evil flourishes
in the silence

Midnight

staring at the clock
trying to understand the
cruelty of time

aching for sleep-
minutes collect
in piles on the floor

Flood

brown rivers swollen-
remnants of our prior lives
piled up in the streets

autumn sun-
in my living room
the black waterline

Abuse

I hit a doorknob
or tripped and fell down the stairs-
I’m just so clumsy

an autumn eve-
the sky lit by
a house on fire

Danger

I may seem nice but
if I had my way I’d carve
the meat from your bones

desperate thirst-
lions in the
tall grass

Murder

a roadside vigil-
flowers for a young man turned
forever nineteen

sudden silence-
shell casings
in the grass

Ruin

the front door ajar-
shards of glass litter the hall
of my ruined home

crows take wing –
a fir crashes
to the forest floor

Rain

in the driving rain-
train doors close as a blue suit
runs past my window

dripping leaves-
rippled shadows
in clear water

Flood

a raging torrent-
black water choked with debris
and bad memories

murky waters-
stirring up
the past