[Day 3]
Alpha-Bits and Omega 3
I don't care one iota
if you're never a knockout like Catherine Zeta Jones.
I'd settle for Delta Burke.
My gamma never had to worry about nutrition,
so why should you? If you eat another yogurt,
you may start to mu.
I guess there's nothing nu
about health-conscious diets,
but I won't tau you what to eat or not.
You love Greek food, for instance,
with lambda die for, or a good gy-rho.
I'd beta fortune you'll live a long life.
So phi upon all of those who shame you,
although with a heavy psi,
you may admit you eta pi.
[Day 11]
Babble
what
have we
created
this tower of words
building itself on itself
reaching beyond our reach, high into the clouds
till the air gets thin, and we climb stratospheric heights
only to find that we don't understand one another anymore
what's the use in trying to touch the stars when we can't even communicate
pull back from that darkness, look at the darkness in your neighbor's face and
say take my hand, it's all right, climb down with me, and we can
breathe again, we can find something in common
we love, help me take the bricks
apart, build a place
where all of
us can
live
[Day 12]
Dervish
You troubleshooter, in demand,
I want to know: Who fixes you?
A crying shoulder, helping hand,
a troubleshooter on demand,
a schedule most could not withstand.
Who picks you up when you are blue,
or troubled, shot from all demands?
I want to know: Who fixes you?
[Day 13]
Pocket Rainbow
All the way from the sun
through the atmosphere,
a concentrated riot of photons,
I've traveled whole, warm and energetic,
down to earth and into a neighborhood,
only to be broken apart as I stream
through a beveled window in someone's front door.
I split into many wavelengths
and bang up against a gray-upholstered couch
in the living room as a multicolored stripe,
seven colors projected onto fabric.
I delight two little girls, who try to catch me
in their hands and stuff me in their pockets,
but in vain. I want to say, It's just refraction, kids,
it's really no big deal. But they're still too little
to understand the science of it,
and besides, their grandmother says,
You can still pretend, and sometime later today,
reach into your pockets, and pull out a rainbow
to help you smile, so that red, orange, yellow, green,
blue, indigo and violet will color your day,
like a paint box of light.
[Day 16]
Free as a Bird
"...it's the next best thing to be..."
- John Lennon
oh, how you can soar now
over the Liverpool rooftops
over your mates, still tramping
the worn-down streets
through the grime and fog
of the city
oh, how you miss her
but she gave them your song
on a tape, and they took it
into their hearts and brought
it out again with harmonies
and his weeping guitar
oh, how you can hear it
wafting through the trees
while you rise above them all
on an updraft to clouds
and if you could you'd say
well done, lads, well done
[Day 18]
Rona's Song
On a bright May morning she stands
on the overlook to a desert valley.
She adjusts her bandana
against the wind and sand.
So much trouble, she tells herself -
the centuries of war and struggles,
the walls and cannonballs,
now crumbling and rusted,
the recently-ruined temples,
which stood for thousands of years,
and newer forces pouring like mercury
over the already punished land.
You can say, So beautiful, or so what,
she thinks, as she shoulders her weapon
and starts off to rejoin her unit.
On the way, she composes a song in her head
about how peace someday may come.
[Day 21]
River Cruise
Our longship cuts a lazy wake
up the Danube and down the Rhine
with the help of dozens of locks
that fascinate us every time,
raising us up, dropping us down
as we navigate a cultural corridor.
Budapest, Vienna, Cologne -
all jewels on this watery necklace
for us to inspect and admire.
We go topside to watch the passing sights -
little towns with scenic buildings,
and once, the trifecta -
a church, a lighthouse, a castle.
Vineyards carpet the steep hills,
and soon we pass the Lorelei,
a looming rock on the right bank of the Rhine,
infamous for its hazardous curve
which brought many ships to their doom.
Legend has it that the murmuring sound
sailors once heard while passing through
was a forlorn lover, a beautiful woman
who enticed them to their demise.
We slip through the snaky strait unscathed,
and continue our journey, relaxed.
For once, we have let someone else
do the driving for us, and the cooking,
the laundry, the washing-up.
From the left bank this evening,
sunset cuts through the trees,
and over chateaubriand and red wine,
we watch the wine-colored clouds.
[Day 23]
When to Play Christmas Music
First of all: never, ever, before Halloween.
That should be illegal.
I don't care if you already have
Christmas trees up in your store.
Rudolph was never destined to be friends
with the Werewolf of London,
and you can't do the Monster Mash
with jingle bells.
The two holidays are not meant to mix -
the lone exception being
The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Once you're into November, it's a toss-up:
those soft-pop radio stations
have special dispensation
to play it nonstop from November first,
but you don't have to listen to it.
Thanksgiving is a good benchmark,
although if it snows where you are
before then, all bets are off.
As soon as you've digested your turkey,
you can have free rein -
play the sacred or the secular,
the sublime or the silly,
the Hallelujah Chorus or
Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.
Just promise you won't drive your musical sleigh
crammed with holiday cheer
over your long-suffering family.
[Day 25]
Hipster Grace
Oh Lord,
or whatever higher power I may subscribe to,
bless this cold-brew coffee,
this microbrew IPA,
this kombucha, this green juice in a Mason jar.
Bless these kimchi tacos and tapas,
these sautéed ramps with kale and bacon,
this cauliflower-crust pizza with pancetta and foraged basil.
Bless this artisanal ancient-grain bread,
these matcha green tea donuts,
this blood orange gluten-free birthday cake.
In the name of Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram,
(click)
Amen.
[Day 29]
Have Yourself a Merry Little Whatever
If "Merry Christmas" is your choice
I'm cool with that; go celebrate.
If you like "Happy Holidays"
you're not a person I'd berate.
There is no "War on Christmas", folks -
there's no one persecuting you.
But don't assume that everyone
must share your Gospel-centered view.
Good people come in many forms;
in fact, so do their holidays.
If peace and love is their intent
they may observe in different ways.
So understand the world has room
for Hanukkah and Kwanzaa joy,
and even Solstice if you wish;
it's more than just a baby boy.
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