surrounded

i have never been
surrounded by so much goodness
as when I’ve been
surrounded by you

decrescendo

the morning breeze was singing
an invisible bow on pine needle strings
fingers over vanilla skin

everything else, decrescendo
bring this moment to focus
play for me, your breath so close

can we slow down?
see souls through eyes

our melodies
may be harmonies
if we let them go

the last rain of the year

i wake to the last rain of the year
pushing down on us from above
it’s an even pressure
no favor shown to the rich
or the beautiful
we are all held by its constancy

across the city, you dream
liquid music sets the scene
a backdrop we share
as the future looms

and tonight we’ll kiss
as the old washes away
it will be a moment
the same as any other
time moves forward
like the rain falls down
with no regard
for those caught in its current

i’m grateful for the rhythm
for trusting that the next second
will arrive just as this one departs
i’m grateful for your touch
for trusting that your skin
will welcome mine
even after this embrace has passed

hold my heart to yours
but loosen your grip on time
watch it slip through your fingers
hear it mark its tempo
see it fall from the gray unknown
and believe we will stand it’s test

more light

these shortest days
are begging to lengthen
the december wind
stretching them out
hoping for a change
more dramatic
than one rotation
on the earth’s axis
can offer

and i am always
searching for more
light in our days

i will be the wind
pulling at the ends
of our time
constantly hoping
for a little more
an extra moment
with you

grief

six haikus on grief

your quiet sorrow
wakes me from the winter night
to sit by your side

a drink to warm you
a friend to hear every word
my arms to rest in

kiss the pain goodbye
watch it board the westbound train
are you lonely now?

these are the phantoms
fingers around our ankles
demons rising up

offer up your skin
a sacrifice to the grief
but keep your heart close

i will cry your tears
let your agony scar me
together, we mourn

healers

last night
the sky was a vivid blue
the air dry and cold
evening brought a frigid clarity
creeping it’s way down
between the layers
through my skin
into whatever form a soul takes

i’ve always thought of my soul
taking the form of autumn
brilliant colors painting a landscape
a backdrop to fires and hikes
to deep breaths of fresh air

we write poems about the leaves
floating to the ground
on a fall day
but the leaves don’t fall together
each leaf falls alone
has no-one to lift it up
fix it to a branch
offer it one more season

and this is how the cold
brings it’s clarity
chilling any half-truths away
those leaves were so loved
when they offered their display
their choreographed colors
but the loneliness of death
makes life seem a false beauty

when my leaf falls
i hope you’ll be there
to watch that gentle glide down
to see me rest softly on the earth
and, maybe, to pick me up

your hands have always been healers
and my soul, always in need of healing