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Obvious Occlusion

In that brief moment of time

before my mother threw up my arms

and popped the ice-cube from my

throat I saw that the rays of the sun

were on automatic pilot.

That my only hope was that I

would grow back like a crustacean leg.

The town would finally

corner the market on town news.

I would start out as a paperboy

but later sensationalize the  local

crocodilians into any number of arsons.

And work my way up to hold up

the village awol with a BB-gun.

Boys jab each other with popsicles.

One inscribes the name of a lover

on a blackened trellis.

These tales keep surfacing

now and again like somebody

coming up for air in a blue

expanse of opacity.  A cold

melting lake of teardrops

where no one really pays

the price of admission

but waits for the exits to open

and slips down among the seats.

Spits up what they have

and sits down to the meal.

Death Has Its Day

I threw a few ducks
into the room
until someone laughed.
"Are you doing this
for the money?" Ray asked.
"I don't think so." I said.
By now everyone was feeling
healthy which was good because
we thought we'd lost Brian.
"I was just trying to tip the scales.
Here have a cookie."
Then there came a knock
upon the window.
"Open up." called a voice.
Ray and I scrambled over
and without thinking
threw up the sash.
Rose cried, "What are you people thinking!
It could have been a Bear!"
"Oh really!" I chuckled.
It was then a glassy
hand beckoned and when
we looked back at the sofa
Brian was gone.

Late in the Evening

It just so happened that Cora started
leaving Jim at night.
after they had both gone to bed.
Sometimes Jim would fall back to sleep
and think nothing more of it.
Other times he would sit on his phone and read.
But more and more he would lie in bed
and get the terrors.
One night after Jim and Cora had gone to bed
Cora got up to leave.
"Where are you going?" Jim asked.
"I am going downstairs." Cora said.
"I cannot sleep."
She left the room and Jim
pulled the covers over his head and
picked up his phone.
But the terrors started again
and this time
he rose weakly
and walked out of the bedroom
down the dark hallway
and stood at the edge of the stairs.
As he looked down he could see light
flickering and could hear music
and what sounded like, people laughing.
As he walked downstairs
the sounds grew louder
until at the bottom of the stairs
Jim looked upon a mass of people.
He looked across
And saw smoke rising and light.
It was a party alright.
As he made his way through the crowd
he looked at some
and starred right into their eyes.
Others he put his head down
as he passed.
He did not recognize any of them.
He finally made his way to the refrigerator
where Cora was
passing out a few beers
and giving out a laugh.
"Is this what's been happening?"
He shouted.
"Is this what's it come to?"
"Wake up Jim, oh, just wake up."
Which Jim did, but this time
he was alone in a desert
thirsting for water.

We Can't Go Back There

One needs a walk I know
more than I'm promising.
Maybe I'll add some color.
Look, the carnival that can be seen
from the harbors of language
is no greater than a letdown.
I'll grab a cod
because deep down inside
I'm a fisherman.
Now things get nice.
When I got to the edge of the forest
you were there.
We started thinking
as one in silence
is thinking.
We installed a revolving door
of conversation
so perhaps we wouldn't miss
the car rides.
So perhaps, we wouldn't
have to breathe
beneath capsized boats.
So that maybe we could
tear the envelope appropriately
and lose
this loneliness.
I hope that clears
everything up.