ON BOTH SHOULDERS

Tossed & screaming

Writhing glass arrows

Flowering, toasted barrels

Of lime juice with cinnamon

Backgammon & linoleum

Chiseled braided hair

Deep cheek-bone jawline

Fine as hell

& ready to rev

Engines roar, skyline

Soaring, succumb to dumb

Numbness & my thumb soar

From calling your phone

Answering the tone

Responding to love

Sharing this hot steamy mug

Of morning coffee with the dog

And my wife what a great fucking

Life living this way with you

Tossing turning somehow

You always meet me on the same side

Giving strides of woman kind

Shattering misconceptions

Of the way things were thought

To be, reaching through

Teaching you is me

The teacher; fuck the glue

This is life meant for two

Unwrapping myself from

Your February arms

Can be difficult the cult

Of personality falling apart

In your arms & the 1^st time

You told me the way

Lips & bubblegum

Triggers sandwiched Mimi

And burrito, cold toes

So we go to the warm side

Of the bed-threesome morning

My 2 girls on both shoulders

Boulders of the world

I can’t feel them

Just the soft pillows of feathers

Beneath the birds, beneath

The wind, beneath my wings

The city looks so small

Us the clouds have surrounded

I don’t think we can get away

We might as well hand over

Our wallets, jewelry and watches

Letting it all slip out of reach

Allowing us to be

In charge of nothing

I think for sure we have

Lost this one to love

THE SILHOUETTE OF LIFE

I walked past last night

Hurried & swept away

Scarf stuffed neck

Headphone rattled drums

It was her eyes that caught

My attention

She awake

Sitting upright, wheelchair

Blanket in lap

Covered & wrapped

Happily watching night

Life saunter by

The silhouette of a life

Once had her eyes

Today again I saw

On the way to work sittng

Up right wheelchair

Again wrapped fleece

Somehow still peace

With the way the sun

Had decided to set

Upon the hills

I always wonder what that

Last day was like

When you spend your first

Night alone

In the streets

That last week

Lost the last

Material possession

& the they city becomes

Your home

Wheelchair

& blankets

Purse wrapped tightly around neck

She said she’s scared to sleep

Cause she has medicine

On her

& there are drug addicts

Out here & she don’t

Want to get robbed

Still slobbled in rings & bracelets

Gold goblets of jewelery

Jesus this woman looks like

My aunt on the corner

How the hell did you get here

I ask her tonight the third times

A charm, I can’t just keep walking

Un alarmed

Is there something I can do

Just a cup of coffee all she asks

She loves coffee

Till seven am breakfast comes

And on Monday a bus ride

To her debit card

Home hospice maybe more

What’s a week or two the streets

She says

Then mentions she’s been out since

Thanksgiving of last year

Not even a tear

Just crystal blue eyes

Through looking glasses

Black pleather purse purched

Perfectly in lap

I hurry back home

To make a cup of hot coffee

With sugar & cream I ask as

I’m still at work

We breathe

What a world we live in

Today, somewhere I wish I had the balls

To say, come home

You can sleep in the living room

For the weekend

But I don’t, I just

Go back home where it’s warm

And prepare a cup of coffee

For the woman on the

Corner, waiting on Friday night

Till Monday comes to take a bus

To a place where she probably

Won’t find, until another time

She says her name is Cindy