bookpage

..... < PREVIOUS PAGE

NEXT PAGE > .....

Fire of the Day

The fool leaps from the cliff.
It is a bold beginning as the horizon
burns the cool summer night
into the adventure of a new day.

I, on the other hand, stand immobile.
The excitement unfolds as birds flicker
in and out of dark pines that whisper
the secrets of the wind's long journey

How I wish for the innocent freedom
of the courageous fool as he leaps
into the burning sky, his flesh exposed
to thin summer air and excited birds.

Some say he is irresponsible and leaps
with an inexperienced faith. I think
he listens to the soft-voiced pines
and ignores the fire of the day.

Listen to poem >

Business Trip to Jamaica

On my first night in Jamaica, I fell
naked into the midnight ocean.
The day was washed away with rum
and silky salt against my skin.

I could see the stars like that ancient
sailor who believed and let them pull
him past the dangers of myth and night.

"How foolish!" I was told, "Jellyfish sting
and you could have drowned
with no help from your colleagues
or a sober self to find the shore."

In the daylight, I can agree, but at night,
salt still weeps from my pores
and the compass stars pull and guide me
through the dark myth towards the day.