Thusly, the raindrop

each falling raindrop
makes its
own
small
splash

The Silence

sunlight reaches
- a sleeper just at dawn
and the world awakes
ever so
reluctantly

An old graveyard

he pauses
and in silence prays
before the gates
of an old graveyard
as a cloud passses

Harvest Moon

in the moonlight
they bend their backs
to harvest what they can
from refuse cans and street trash
harvest moon

A Tanka for Christina

who has seen the wind
trapped by the branches
of an old oak tree
resisting its capture
so valiantly?

A tanka for Neil Armstrong - of Ohio & the world

that young man
from Ohio
his one small step
was a giant leap
forward

before & after

when we where not here
a whole world went about
its business
when we leave here
it will as well

Weight of Water

Weight of water

wears down the tallest mountain

to smooth stones

later to be pitched carelessly

by children

when the world's was young

a wren's song

chatters and bubbles over

at the break of dawn

that summer

when the world was young

puddles & the child

so many puddles
that won't be dodged
the rain brings out
the child
on this wet afternoon

Tarpon

twisting and turning
a tarpon leaps from still waters
its silver scales reflecting
the mid-day's sun
on the fisherman's eyes

Slices of stale bread
greenish bologna, dicey cheese
She makes sandwiches for her children
who will eat them -- hungrily
cheating even the roaches

must not look closely
at these dented cans in the bargain bin
-- he tells himself and
reaches for his supper

fog thick as cotton
clings stubbornly each morning
to the damp, cool ground
resisting the sun's hot rays
before surrendering