On Being Lost and Found in Maryland’s Appalachian Fog

the highway became the harbor
full of creaking, moaning ships
water splashing and slowshing
there it was: crashing collision
metals smashing and scraping
screaming of pain and fear
fear of what you couldn’t see: only hear
only taste the dampness of the air
didn’t i think i would die that night
smacked dead by a semi
before things were made right?

Some Strange Solstice

i may be a little bipolar
passive aggressive in my nature
the way i reel in and cast away
perhaps completely tossed aside
with you though i find more than balance
some strange spring solstice
that sets all right within my world
so much so that family are tolerable
friends are more than bearable
employees need not feel the wrath
of sudden mood swings swaying
between pure enjoyment
and outright despising

Paradise

my boyfriend had a rough life
growing up in what some call paradise
it’s not all rum and reggae down there
unless it’s the rum-soaked breath of careless father
or reggaed out rasta rags for relatives
shuffling their burdens onto an aging mother
who spends her days hacking away
at sugarcanes for just a little money
but a small boy sees this all and cries
swears to be the one to help, the one to rise

Vast

in the vastness of this house
i find i lose you in the foyers
twisted stairwells and deep rooms

in the busyness of our schedules
it’s hard to find you before 5
and beyond the evening sun

gone are the days when i found
solace in a small city dwelling
stories above a rambling street

where you would ease in like the moon
curling up alongside me crescent-like:
your gravity pulling me over the distance
so that our two bodies sustained the other

Remembering Prior to Reincarnation

you, my partner
in business, life and love
for the past decade
and perhaps the furthest
reaches of time
recall this:
the tight squeeze of a hand
the taste of tears
the warm, deep breathing
all this comfort that surrounds,
perfectly gift-wrapped modesty,
simple things to carry with you always
for when the day comes
that we cannot be side by side
as the minutes burn into
the sterilized ethereality
of some hospital far away
lacking in happily ever afters (period)…………………………..
save these things for when
morals laws and rules keep our final
breaths seconds and pains apart
and take them with you to that next space

after one is burned and one is buried
there will be time for remembering
as we search each other out
for the next lifetime

Partnerish

you dare to ask me what type
of lover/partner are you

ripping and roaring
falling short on a
weekend basis
tearing things down
boozing it up
sending smoke signals
laced with liquor
until a perfect storm
is created:
emotions
passion
anger

a boat listing heavily to the left
trolling in circles, carelessly casting
passengers overboard

raising barriers and bitching
when they can’t be broken down

you: neatly creased and fashionably
folded, tight corners pointed
me: a ragged zipper, finding and ripping
your most intimate, secret, private
places to painful shreds

what kind of partner are you to me?
a role model, a mentor
the type i should be

Light

you are not some bulb
easily replaced by another
pulled from a shelf
and screwed to stay a while

so when your life-light burns low
and the final spark is blown
i will cling to you still
perhaps living in darkness
during the remainder of my days

2001

life is sweet
and what you make it
so says natty dread
on goldfish crackers
almost stale french bread
and cheap boxes of wine
we make life sweet
and oh so fine
with an electric blanket and hot love
we warm ourselves from the world outside
when gas prices are too high
in this old brewery building
with crumbling plaster walls
and dark, dank yellow halls
we have made our own paradise

Two Days

a gentle pattering rain washes us clean
when only yesterday halo capped trees
caught the sun’s wayward rays:
so it is with you and i
sagitarrius and gemini
world full of love and fun
variations and variances
finding what it is
-life-
that is in the middle of it all

Tidalfall

in the night
with my ear
to your back
i hear
your heart beat
in the night
with arms wrapped
tight
i rise and fall
with your side:
this is the tide
that has pulled me
out in love
i am in love
each beat
fleeting seconds
a minute by minute
countdown until
one of us leaves
forever-
no more apologies
or second chances
gone, and only memories
for ten years
we have been side by side
so long that i have forgotten
what it means to be alone
i cannot remember how
to be myself solely
so i hope on that day
i am the first to leave