Look Skyward

you can hardly see the specks 

in the clouds, but they are there,

the skydivers, their colorful kites

winding up and down the thermals,

like the backbone of a DNA molecule,

each person close to the other,

never colliding.  

I stopped to look, squinting my eyes,

distracted by the pattern in the clouds,

the slot of blue above the hilltops,

the brown grasses of winter on the

gentle slopes.

those skydivers up there, do they see 

the same beauty or are their eyes full

of tears from the wind rushing 

across their faces

We do it all for hu-MAN-ity

yep,

women do it all, and then some,

unpaid, of course, it's a pleasure,

thank you for the opportunity to 

wipe the poop from their bottoms

after suckling them, after which dinner

needs to be done, the shopping, too.

get paid, no way, we are women after all

born and bred to serve hu-MAN-ity

without complaint, we are so well trained.

we feed and clothe, we wash and dry

and at the end of the day, we sooth

his frayed and needy soul, we do it all,

yep

we do it all, unpaid and happy

Valium bottles at our sides,

we help hu-MAN-ity thrive. 

Moderna, Boulder Community Hospital, thank you

The text arrived at 10 a.m. and the shot

entered my arm at 3 p.m. after a 5 minute wait,

as scheduled, headed home after another 

15 minute wait to for any corporeal reaction.

All this

a mere three days after I was eligible.

Next shot, 2:45 p.m. in four weeks.

Not bad for a broken government.

My little gardener

I know that one day we will dig in the dirt

together

planting tiny seeds in crooked furrows

spinach and lettuce in spring

beans and squash in early summer.

her tiny fingers will get bigger

and more skilled

today she digs her tiny fingernails

into the warm, damp earth

raking aside dead leaves and grasses

reaching for pine cones

and one day, we will harvest together

my  hands will be heavily veined

but I will still hold hers in mine.

tag: Mira

I needed that

I needed that stiff drink on the deck

the sun slowly sinking west

the chill in the wind

the sooth of in-person conversation

seeing my brother again.

damn the restless night's sleep

after a drunken 3 hour unconscious 

rest, where I wake up in the same position,

fully clothed, some drool on my pillowcase.

I needed that.

It was great.

Be like a baby: never stop exploring

try something new, be someone new

that's what the podcast told me to do

meet new people, go new places

don't tell them who you used to be

what you used to do

it's a new day, new adventures, new challenges.

find a new cup, a new top, turn it over,

throw it across the carpet, try again

advice of the day:  be like a baby

never stop exploring

tag: mira

The house on the Hill

yes, it's huge.

and it belongs to my son and his wife, from the room

cantilevered towards the west, one can

gaze in awe at the mountains, so close, and

even walk two blocks to a path where one can lose

oneself amongst the pine trees and grasses.

I will go there to escape the din of downtown

where a man was breaking into houses

armed with a machete, a crazy person,

we have them down here.

a mere 3 miles distance, one can look towards

the mountains, soak in the hot tub on the back deck.

this is not my life, but I'll bring my swimming 

suit and soak my tired bones.