FRIENDSHIP

when everything is right

i don't ask why

as the friendship will be

and float like a butterfly

when things go wrong

no matter if it's her or me

the friendship will remain

though at times will sting like a bee

the friendship is special

like the rose that will bloom

as the bee and butterfly emerge

we will never cocoon

sharing the sunshine and storms

the warmth and the snow

standing with it and through it

as the hot and cold winds blow

realizing

nothing lasts forever

SLEEPING ON THE EDGE

the palms sway in the breeze

above the saffron pavement

all i can see beyond him is

the azure ripples

of the caribbean sea

the havana coastline retreats like a hem

from the patches of seaweed

i saw at first glance

jesus lying on the edge

of the seawall last nite

his latin shadow spilled across the ocean

and over the kids fishing on the rocks

below her bedroom window

covered in the cobwebs of the breeze

we slapped at the flies

as the havana tenements collapsed

enclosed in turqouise

he slept

the words i used from the 50 word salad.... patches..seaweed..slapped ..bedroom.. turquoise

GONE

forgetting you is easy

now that your gone

i feel so relieved

not having to pick up the pieces

and so treasure

the times you were lost

and didn't have to chase you

or find your owner

you simply gave nothing

so when they put you down

it was better than losing

my boot

my shirt

my hat

my leg

they amputated

Puting Off The Poem

today the clouds mumbled my thoughts

of azure blue and boredom

no sky after it disapeared

until i napped after noon

the cayenne didn't stay after i sneezed

and the pumpkin seeds lost their power

but still showed kindness

then holding the pickle jar with frog

hearing the chimes delight the breeze

i forged ahead of the birds and song

for their is no rest for the seasons

to look for the emory board of grit

searching for the edge of my nails

and repeating i shall not kill

shall not kill

shall not kill

until i write this poem

Road Trip Never Made

I went to cuba looking for minoso

but found che instead

i jumped into his prefect

for miles and miles we drove

searching for adventure not minnie

we talked about marti and poetry

baseball argentina and fidel

we stopped at the stadium in holguin

looking for the girl with the pearl earing

on the road again another story

he said when the first shot was heard

cuba woke up startled out of sleep

bringing land reform justice and bread

smoking cigars and drinking rum

the trip seemed boring now

until we reached santiago de cuba

driving up to the pink house

with minoso standing at the door

smiling

Dancing In The Pool

we sat outside the hotel room
watching the two dance in the pool
thrilled at their movements
in awe of their absolute singularity

the midget like the changeling in the fairytale
and the tall green mermaid showed a vivid contrast
to bring an acute balance as they danced
jubilant never to impugn each others movement


the prompt was using these words 10 words
acute, green, bring, room, pool, changeling, singularity, jubilant, impugn, hotel

Hometown Hero

in my youth burnaby did not exist

so we invented it

second street was the forum

where the rocket scored all his goals

fourth street was the arena

where submarine joe lost our lacrosse balls

seventeenth avenue was municipal stadium

where willie made that great basket catch

eighteenth avenue was special the gardens

where my aunt and uncle lived

they had a hoop with outdoor lights

somedays i was over there at dawn

shooting hoops and dribbling till after dark

most days an older guy was there

he helped the high school team win title number one

bob was his name and played like cousy

he had the skills to make baskets from anywhere

nobody could ever guard him i wouldn't even dare

bob could hit a shot from the parking lot

and dribble behind his back and through his legs

i learned to shoot from every spot at the gardens

dribbled between all the cars at the gardens

dreaming of championship number two

the forum is no longer there

the arena has been paved

the stadium has condos

however the gardens are still there

not the one we invented

only the ones that grow down the boulevard