Once he quit sniffing

cocaine off the toilet seat,

his highs were replaced with lows.

~

One man’s rock bottom,

to the toxic narcissist;

the cost of doing business.

From those wizened hands.

through which every tool would slip,

emerge the most wondrous works.

~

Years have gone into

this artisan’s craft with such

amazing results.

As sails luff, useless,

we flounder without rudder

and we make no steerageway.

~

Waiting for changing

winds, we sit and talk

about bringing oars next time.

My soul remembers

every piercing jagged step

on that sun-baked gravel lot.

~

And the body stores

that memory in every

cell lest you forget.

Warm spring evening

Resound with persistent peeps;

Tree frogs awakened

~

Knox listens closely,

hoping it’s his beloved

sticks summoning him.

Knox decided to

try out for the opera

when he spotted that squirrel.

~

Canine arias,

regardless provocation,

sure are an acquired taste.

Looked around today

but found nothing much of note

on which to wax poetic.

~

Even the birds’ songs

seemed a bit forced on this cold

and quite dreary day.

There’s plenty of food

and plenty of room, but still

they flutter and fume.

~

They think the choicest

spot and morsel must be theirs,

so off they fly… to Greenland?

All preparations

are most likely overkill,

unless the worst transpires.

~

Better to prepare

for the worst than be taken

by surprise with no options.

On this homebound day,

with amenities or no,

we find warmth in family.

~

Even when tempers

flare, it’s a whole lot better

than the cold out there.

Blazing frozen trails

through the sunny blinding woods

from the comfort of my home.

~

Virtual travel

comes in real handy when snow

and ice block our paths.

Like the roulette wheel,

given time, all players lose-

shooting craps with climate change.

~

The stakes are high, but

some insist on gambling by

leaving things just as they are.

Wind invited snow

to sail, an invitation

snow could not refuse.

~

The resulting dunes

echo frozen desertscapes;

some monochrome Sahara.

Like some giant fan

sound a thousand Starling wings

whirling round; skyward gyres.

~

After all that snow

and ice, Spring is on the way

much to their and our delight.

Sky’s tears wash away

the cold, white reminders

of past frozen days.

~

White reminders stay

hidden in dark recesses,

shadowed from the cleansing light.

The wonder of snow

really made us wonder why

we were not better prepared.

~

After a winter

of weatherfolk crying wolf,

complacency took command.

Contentious debate

conducted with courtesy

champions civility.

~

A real valentine

to everyone, those who talk

and those who listen.

Both people were in

the same place at the sane time.

but were worlds apart.

~

Some live out of phase;

eternally unable

to comprehend their neighbor.

When old friends convene

it’s hard to get good work done

due to the reminiscing

~

Given enough time

there’s room for old friends to both

reminisce and work.

As the snow and ice

melt, we begin to regain

ground inside and out.

~

May the coming thaw

warm those ice cold frozen hearts

indifferent to suffering.

Those most suffering

with “Trump Derangement Syndrome”

are the ones who think him great.

~

Especially when

it’s obvious that he does

not give a hoot about them.

As the sun rises

and the day starts to unfold,

folks and flocks ask to be fed.

~

And as the sun sets,

and day wilts into darkness,

folks and flocks snack before bed.

Sometimes volunteer

work is more time consuming

than… less gainful employments.

~

Sometimes more is less

and, as that old saying goes,

sometimes less is more.

Today that old song,

” When will they ever learn?”, keeps

playing in my mind.

~

Some will never ask

“Where have all the flowers gone.”,

deeming them unimportant.

Ice floes on the James

mirror upstate Christmas scenes

ala Currier and Ives.

~

They may make lovely

images, but it is best

to avoid them at all cost.

The slow and steady

drip of truth may finally

release the cold grip of ICE.

~

Antiseptic truth

is just what cold people need

to cure freezing fascist frost.

A bunch of hot heads

and cold hearts which disturb peace

and unleash terror? That’s ICE.

~

ICE will lose its grip

when the thaw of compassion

permeates our Nation’s soul.

The glittering crust

of sunlit scintillations

fade to gray as clouds increase.

~

Before you know it

even the graying crust will

be dancing in the moon light.