Light – Page 26 – Iron Haiku

clearing the tables-
the bartender stacks the chairs
yet we’re still talking
–
lost in your eyes-
waiting to speak
two simple words

a dank feeble breeze-
the rumble of the el train
passing my window
–
distant sirens-
my room awash
in a neon glow

rain thunders outside-
oil painted landscapes smearing
against my window
–
old masters-
failing vision
frozen in time

verdant sunlight-
hillsides dappled by the shade
from the passing clouds
–
sea foam-
emerald hills
flecked with sheep

muscle and sinew-
soot stained and glistening from
the heat of the forge
–
shimmering heat-
the cold ring of
hammer on steel

a cool morning breeze-
silver waves ripple across
unmown fields of grass
–
gulls over the beach-
cattails bowed to
the rising sun

telling ghost stories-
embers on the rising smoke
mixing with the stars
–
distant howls-
another log
feeds the fire

sedona night skies-
a desert scorpion crawls
across my bedroll
–
campfire-
embers rise to greet
the desert stars

overnight snowfall
blankets the desert landscape
of sand and sagebrush
–
condors overhead-
remnants of snow
in cactus shadows

a whole life reduced
to two dust covered and scuffed
satchels by her feet
–
cold desert night-
the tent offers
poor respite