the world has ended
this is the afterlife
birds here
and people
speak so many languages
the silence that
sits above
this thin layer of air
is infinite and
louder than wind
i expected angels
in the afterlife
cherubim
saraphim
or, if i’ve been wrong
lakes of fire
but no
the winged things here are
dragonflies
hummingbirds
parakeets
moths
and lakes lie like
broken pieces of sky
Poems
A Place I Can Have Horses
at night i dream of us
of you
of the vast sunny plain
that lies between
your shoulders
i build my house
in the valley there
it is a place I can
have horses and
plant a garden in the
rich fertile soil
Unexpectedly Iridescent / Inesperadamente Iridescente
i am free
to inhabit all of my skin
to pulse this blood into
every capillary
i own
you are free
to see me in
whichever color you choose
call me an angel
a liar
a lion
a stone
like a blue morph, i
am at home among orchids and ferns
invisible at rest
unexpectedly iridescent in motion
soy libre
de habitar toda mi piel
de pulsar esta sangre hacia
cada capilar que
me pertenece
tu eres libre
de verme de
cualquier color que elijas
llámame ángel
mentirosa
leona
piedra
como un morfo azul, mi
lugar es entre orquídeas y helechos
soy invisible en reposo
inesperadamente iridiscente en movimiento
Last Word
you can have the
last word
I don’t want it
let’s let your
final accusations
hang there in the air
like mirrors
I will bare my teeth
in a smile
Invisible Things
in the dark
night creatures move
scorpions
skunks
armadillos
coons
I am in my bed
dreaming of daytime and
I do not see them
in the morning
rain falls lightly
invisible things are
in new places
Stop
this poem wants to say
enough is enough
but it doesn’t
know the language
it only knows wind
and the dust it carries
that settles everywhere
and is there
in the morning
it wants to say
no more
but it can only
shuffle leaves and
throw little sticks to the ground
this poem takes a breath
turns around and
doesn’t say anything
Tiger / Christmas Eve
there’s no escaping
Christmas Eve
it follows on the heels of
innocuous events like
autumn equinox
Halloween
you can hide
under the bed,
swim through crocodiles
across the estuary,
climb a tree and
not come down
but Christmas Eve can
hear you breathing
it will trail you
like a tiger
it will catch you
in its claws
L’accento L’avrò Per Vita: Poesie in Italiano da CERTA COME IL POMERIGGIO
Il sabato 9 novembre ho fatto una piccola presentazione del mio nuovo libro di poesia e ho letto 5 poesie primo in inglese, poi in italiano. Il libro, CERTAIN AS AFTERNOON / CERTA COME IL POMERIGGIO e una raccolta di poesie sull’amore, la vita, e la morte.
Un mio amico ha fatto dei video della presentazione e oggi, qui, condivido con voi le 5 poesie lette in italiano.
Non ridete. L’accento Americano l’avrò per vita.
1 di 5: Una poesia che descrive il mondo di “prima,” e finisce con un avvertimento
2 di 5: Sul momento in cui la malatia è scoperta
3 di 5: Una poesia che parla della morte e il primo momento (di momenti infiniti) di silenzio
4 di 5: Contemplando cos’è che si deve fare quando hai gia fatto tutto quello che potevi fare
5 di 5: Una poesia riguardo i cenere, promesse, e il mare
Namaste
You Can Always Come for the Cookies / Videos from a Poetry Reading
On Saturday, November 9 at Tamarindo’s one and only bookstore, I held a small launch party for and reading of my new poetry collection, CERTAIN AS AFTERNOON. I think I had realistic expectations regarding how much of a crowd a poetry book about death might draw, so I was pleasantly surprised by how many people showed up. Thirty is the number I heard: old friends, new friends, strangers, other widows. I sold all the books I have.
I made a lot of cookies and bought some wine for the occasion. Even if you don’t love poetry (not the biggest draw in a surf town), you can always come for the cookies. I’m good with that.
A dear friend of mine videoed my presentation in short segments, which, today I am sharing with you. Following, is the introduction to CERTAIN AS AFTERNOON, and each of the 5 poems in English.
A neighbor who is also a poet made this comment to me after reading CERTAIN AS AFTERNOON:
“You say it’s a book about death, but it isn’t. It’s a book about life. You use shades of black to show us all the other colors.”
INTRO 1: HOW THE BOOK CAME TO BE, AND HOW IT CAME TO BE IN TWO LANGUAGES
INTRO 2: WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK?
POEM 1 OF 5: A poem that paints a picture of “before” and ends with a warning
POEM 2 OF 5: About discovering sickness
POEM 3 OF 5: A poem about death and the first (of an infinate number) moment of silence
POEM 4 OF 5: On what you must do after you’ve done everything
POEM 5 OF 5: Later, contemplating ashes, the ocean, the idea of going home
Namaste
Echo / Eco
this poem
opens its mouth
to ask for something it wants but
then there are no words
the hole in its heart
is perhaps too deep to fill
too strange
a cave with too many chambers
it’s a poem that has learned
to adapt to anything
it can become a cricket
or a whale
it can vanish completely
but when asked what it wants
it only echos
* * * * *
questa poesia
apre la bocca
per chiedere quello che vuole, ma
non le vengono parole
il buco nel suo cuore
è forse troppo profondo per riempire
troppo strano
una grotta con troppe camere
è una poesia che ha imparato
adattarsi a qualsiasi cosa
può diventare un grillo
o una balena
può svanire completamente
ma quando gli viene chiesto cosa vuole
fa solo eco
Seed / Bone
spit out the seed
the bone of the fruit
you have eaten
that has become you
open your mouth
lift your tongue and
drop the nut
no secrets
are allowed here
no pieces carried
from the past
spit the seed
onto the soil
breathe a new
mouthful of air
roots will come to
the piece of bone
that has given you
its flesh
that you have
carried to
this place
You Should Know by Now
you should know by now
that the smoke from
Amazonia
will change the world,
that all of us will breathe
the trees instead of
their green breath.
all that cannot run
sacrifices its body to the flames.
you should know by now
that the world is round.
what you throw into the
air today
lands in your lap
tomorrow.
you should know by now
about the moon and the tides.
you should know better than
to take your eyes off the
horizon while you wait.
you should have learned to
sense the movement,
change in color,
before you see the swells
and you should know
to paddle out
before you see what
you know is coming.
you should know by now
winds will come in december
crocodiles can swim in saltwater
that life and love are
happy accidents.
you should know by now
when to turn off the lights
the wifi, and
just
stop.
if you don’t,
who can teach you?
on the screen are only
patterns of dark and light–
constellations.
you should know by now
that sugar will kill you
faster than salt,
but what comes out of your mouth
matters as much as
what goes in.
you are what you eat;
you are what you say.
no matter how much you talk
every time you inhale
there is silence.
