We rely on others

He reminds me
It is not so simple
As I think,
Not so simple
As I remember.
I do not remember
As much
As I think.
None of us does.
When I wake up
Somewhere else
There I am.
When you wake up
Somewhere else
There you are.
We rely on others to tell us
Where we have been
So we can find out
Where we are
Now

Friends in the footnotes

In the public domain
Lives with ibid
Lives with anon
They are friends
In the footnotes.
They are often
Italicized
Whispered
Sometimes we know
Where
They come from
Sometimes not.
As a child
My beloved knew
Ibid
Was an expert
On pirates.

Finger memory

It's not just the calluses
Which need to return
The chord memory
Is caught somewhere
Back
In my head.
The fingers
Must remember
As well as
Both hands.
Do what you are called
To do.
Oh yes
We remember
Still
It will take awhile
Then comes
The singing.

It's good to know

Wild currant looks like
The red
It was before
It's good to know
Or not so good
To know
Our tastes remain
The same.
Red
Is red
Is red
Is red.
Somehow
Wild currant
Sounds
More exotic.

Halves

Some things come in halves
The other half
Waits in the wings.

Sometimes the wings
Are filled
With different things.

Welcome happy morning

I have killed more trees
Than I imagined
Possible,
Piled the wealth
Of paper
Around my chair
It is eight inches
Tall.
This is the pile
The cat has not
Discovered.
Welcome happy morning
We both
Are occupied.
For now.

Cat shreds

In addition
To assistance
Finishing my yogurt
Every morning
She shreds my writing
Strews it around
The living room.
Here is where
We live
She says
The living room
Alive with paper
Here is where
We live.

Time to sing

The strings arrive
Tomorrow
After the guitar is strung
The capo found
The key chosen
I am a fan
of Em.
D is also fine.
Then comes the music
Itself
The lyrics
What do they say?
The music
How does it speak?
I am a fan of Em
D is also fine.
The lyrics
The music
Em
D.
Time to sing.

I wonder what the birds say

I wonder what the birds say
To one another
In the morning.
I so often
Miss them
By sleeping in.
I overheard conversation
This morning
The sparrows
The crow
The singular blue jay.
Now they are silent
Other noises
Overtake them.
Often they start again
Toward evening
By then
I am occupied
With other things.
I wonder what they say
Then.

Zoo train

We live two blocks
From the train tracks
The train station.
In the morning the whistles blow
More often
Than the rest
Of the day.
Even in the morning
The whistles
The wheels
Carry romance
To the next town over.
My friend is married
To a man whose goal in life
Was to drive the train
At the zoo
Wear the hat.
Now he does.
Now he does.
The elephants
The lions
The tigers
The bears
Oh my.
In the zoo
The cadre of engineers
Most of them
Retired
Carry romance through
The zoo.

Calluses

First comes the ordering
Of the new guitar strings
Then the unpacking
Of the guitar
From the case
In the corner.
New strings
Are always
Required
New strings
Then come the calluses
It has been years
Since I played lullabies
To the children.
Now I will first sing
To myself
While I build up
My calluses.

Scrambled eggs

My head feels
Like scrambled eggs
Soon the concussion
Will come round right
Tis the gift
To be simple
Tis the gift
To be free
Soon the socks
Unpaired
In the dryer
Will find one another
Oh there you are
Oh there you are
They will say
Meanwhile
Scrambled eggs.