How can we apply

the Occam’s Razor precept

to human motivations?

~

No need to pretty

things up. We basically want

 what we want when we want it.

When the dust begins

to settle and the air starts

to clear, what becomes of fear?

~

In the aftermath,

as the fog of war burns off,

past terrors feel less fearsome.

The pendulum swings,

but the day and I stall so

I decide to sleep.

~

All clocks require

periodic rewinding

to continue keeping time.

Lasting change begins

when we tenderly hold who

we were, are, and still could be.

~

Guess the time has come

to resort to movie quotes:

“I have no response to that!”

Trying to change roles

from rescuer to coach – not

as easy as it might seem.

~

Sometimes coaches must

just let the swimmer flounder

until they hit their rhythm.

That Bald Eagle feasts,

unfazed by speeding traffic,

upon this road-killed carcass.

~

Sometimes the feaster

himself becomes the feast as

many opportunists learn.

Bite-sized poetry –

it doesn’t have to be an

epic to make your heart sing.

~

Sometimes a light snack

nourishes the spirit more

than a heavy, meaty, meal.

Crocus demonstrate

even when all seems bleakest

life and hope remain.

~

Even when unseen

 hope is always there, ready,

like the crocus, to flower.

Day’s grand opening –

large snow flakes, some ice, some rain.

What will day’s finale be?

~

Reallocate snow

from our northern border. We

must build a bigly igloo!

Oh how I wish we

could make America great

with a no confidence vote!

~

It is indeed a

national emergency

when demagogues rule.

A pink and purple

skyway, dotted here and there

with pirouetting Starlings.

~

When we turn our eyes

to the sky, our sinking mood

may rise and pirouette too.

February rains –

kids complain it isn’t snow,

but keep hoping for a freeze.

~

Any rain that falls

when the freezing point is near

would be more welcome as snow.

Failing health does not

define disability,

that’s capitulation’s insult.

~

One man’s failing health

could well be another man’s

disability.

Humpy Trumpy stands

for a wall, lost his balance,

could take a great fall.

~

All Senate horses’

asses and Congressional

toads can’t keep his cracked mind whole.

Do you ever feel

like you’re a small particle

in another’s universe?

~

Every vast ego

underestimates microbes

until the fever rages.

Center has not held.

The falconer’s gone golfing

on his executive time.

~

Evangelicals,

see him slouching toward the swamp

and golf-clap with dispassion.

We’re here now, but we

never know when we will go.

How then should we spend our time?

~

Best to go quickly!

Once the government shuts down,

we’ll spend all our time in line.

What should the statute

of limitations be on

gross insensitivity?

~

Sensitivity

can’t be regulated. It 

has to be cultivated.

How many times must

we go down these roads before

we realize they are dead ends?

~

As long as we walk

with eyes and hearts and minds closed,

we will ever lose our way.

In a life filled with

external demands, it can

be hard to tend to the soul.

~

Soul tending demands

fierce internal assessment

and clear external report.

Does just royalty

expect loyal sycophants,

or does everyone?

~

Loyal sycophant ?

Who wants someone who butters 

you up while letting you down?

This dusting of snow

 can’t begin to compare with

some snow jobs I’ve seen.

~

Icy demeanor

of fiery rhetoric,

all con men are cold hearted.

Effortlessly he

maintains his sanguine affect

during exsanguination.

~

Perhaps if he were

on the receiving end, he

would lose his sanguine affect.

I guess when you are

a genius president, you

don’t need input from intel.

~

This current culture,

replete with egotism,

tends to engender “fake news”.

Is a rigid mask

any less dysfunctional

than explosive emotion?

~

It’s been so long since

I’ve seen a rigid public 

mask, I wouldn’t know.

Sow seeds of smallness.

Short-circuit signs of service.

Sacrifice your soul.

~or~

Contemplate chaos,

consider coalitions,

cultivate community.

Aging gracefully

is not for the faint of heart

or for the weak of spirit.

~

Aging gratefully

can strengthen the muscles of

both heart and spirit.

Where do you turn when

it’s your turn to take the lead

and no one follows?

~

People are often loath

to play follow the leader.

Just lead anyway.

Is this compromise,

or more amoral slight of hand

by the greatest shister in chief?

~

Less compromise than

cave, an act driven not by

cleverness but fear…

The sun refused

to let those dark clouds define

the day. It shone anyway.

~

Some deluded sons

think they shine bright regardless

all dark cloudy evidence.