
la escarcha muerde

la escarcha muerde

it is so satisfying to shuffle into the leaves on walks, to hear them crunch and watch them dance on the streets with the wind and the geese and my elongated shadow

small purple plums
plaid-covered tables
the smell of violets
two brown crayons
waving from a train
yellow roses in a vase
braids of garlic
rocking chairs and
warm embraces

the wider our years,
the deeper our regret

Yesterday i watched a hawk swoop down
and catch a little field mouse in the brush by the marsh.
It walked with its breast held forward and snow-white
underfeathers fluttering in the crisp wind.
Occasionally, the hawk looked in our direction
with what appeared to be icy superiority and
casual indifference.
But i was aware, that she was aware, of my breath
and my smell and the slightest movement from
the curious pup at my side.

the grey fog
matches my grey eyes,
the various tints on a mourning dove’s feathers,
the shadows in birch bark,
and the worn wet wood of the river docks

the end of an era can be
the passing of a year,
the passing of a day,
or the passing of a single moment

bobbing gently,
his thoughts swim with
the swift river currents

a whispered breath,
exhaled and wistful

the world wants
and collects
and demands–
and i wonder what the trees think
when they sink
into their growing obligations
and seasonal dress codes