Kanashibari
awake in the dark
so transfixed by the vision
I can’t make a sound
–
the crickets silenced-
a specter looms
o’er my footboard
Category Archives: Breath
Temple
a smiling buddha
round belly worn smooth by
hands of thousands
–
pagoda doors-
stone steps cut
in the hillside
Time
a rain-soaked highway-
the skeletal hand of fate
cuts another thread
–
trapped in amber-
mountains are as
grains of sand
Reincarnation
a thousand lifetimes
wasted following the path
of least resistance
–
spring dawn-
first sunrise
seen again
Mourning
cold tears of mourning
mix with the rain as I turn
my face to the sky
–
false dawn-
I’m sill here
without you
Emptiness
nothing left at home
save the old chair and sofa
that I brought with me
–
vacant memories-
cobwebs cling
to empty shelves
Passing
one flame extinguished
while another adds it’s light
to the firmament
–
eyes downcast-
black armbands
wet with rain
Coffee
old invitations-
coffee’s brewed in the kitchen
if you’d ever show
–
rising steam-
cozy dreams
of coffee shops
Cemetery
blackbirds in the trees-
pebbles left on your headstone
in remembrance
–
knees in the soft earth-
I clear away
the weeds and leaves
Heat
atop cotton sheets
the drone of the ceiling fan
keeping me awake
–
sleeping dogs-
paddle fans spin
in lazy circles