Beasts of Burden

Against ripe corn fields
Twin dark manes beset by wind
Still plow and toil

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Scent vs Taste

a pungent French cake
made of lavender essence
tastes like my hand soap

Anticipating the Autumn Migration

Perhaps this fall
I shall espy a Wood-y
Mixed in among the mallards

Desert Rain

cracked ground parched
for a late rainstorm
thunderclouds

The Jet Set

Tree Swallow banking
through a rush of windy current
nature’s blue chrome jet

Sunset Brew

Orange pekoe tea
Sandpipers flying in vees
Against the sunset

Gems

My favorite jewels
Deep emeralds and fine gold
June bug’s carapace

Sink or Swim

Adrift on sea fog
A fisherman stands on deck
Secure in his boat
Comforted by his aplomb
I too, float, though also lost

Feather

One drifting feather
Blown between pedestrians
On its own journey
Moved by camaraderie
I wish to walk alongside

Silver

Mid-August, I wake with my bones aching from cold that has seeped in from the open windows. Outside, the sun runs silver over white poultry trucks. Ambling tourists sway with their backpacks on one shoulder.

shoulders bared silver
weak for the height of summer
wintry sunshine

Not one leaf has turned, but already I dread the fall, knowing winter is not far behind. Another flashback. Another year’s end to sum up and find wanting.