NEW DAY

      NEW DAY

Once you turn eighty,

each new day is lagniappe, 

time to laugh at oneself

and all the lies

you learned to believe

in order to survive.

Take it easy, relax;

self-forgiveness

is the order of the day.

No need to punish yourself

for the hippocampic wipeout.

Take a deep, deep breath.

Divine mind is everywhere

there is a where;

it’s even orbiting in your quarks.

So turn off the static and listen;

don’t let all that wisdom go to waste.

    December 31, 2012

MOVING ON

    MOVING ON

Out of the trap now,

free at last. 

Don’t look back.

. 

Just be, just do,

in the fullness of your be,

in the fullness of your do.

 

Cook it, but don’t overcook it.

 December 22, 2012

THE LAST DAY

   THE LAST DAY

December 21, 2012,

the end of the world

according to the Mayan calendar;

but it didn’t happen.

  

Where did they go wrong?

We can know a lot of things,  

but the future isn’t one of them.

 

However, for 155,000 human beings

it was the end of their world;

it happens every day,

almanacly speaking,

but you weren’t one of them.

Congratulations,

you survived,

or you wouldn’t be reading this. 

Was it worth it?

  December 21, 2012

BIRTHDAY BASH

 BIRTHDAY BASH

Mid-December,

lightning, thunder,

wind and rain,

wet birds fly askew

like autumn leaves.

 

Inside, all is peace and calm;

it’s Beethoven’s birthday bash,

and his last string quartet

followed by the seventh symphony

pull one’s soul into paradise.

 December 17, 2012

TE DEUM

      TE DEUM

He never knew

what he was looking for

until he found it

on the way out,

decided to stay around awhile

with no regrets

over the wasted years;

it wasn’t he

but captive aliens

inside his body.

And now he knew

that no one owns the earth,

perhaps a piece or two

on temporary loan;

but the sky,

the sky was his

in all its shades of blue—

cerulean, cyan, topaz,

sapphire, indigo, teal—

to name but a few.

 

Now all the fragments fit:

oneness, wholeness,

and peace at last.

   December 7, 2012

INFINITY'S SECRET

   INFINITY’S SECRET

Every galaxy has its gods,

but there’s only one uncreated creator.

Every galaxy has its gods.

And all the gods have

their angels and devils,

avatars and evangelists,

saints and sinners,

mystics and martyrs,

atheists and agnostics,

poets and prophets.

It’s finitude’s noble attempt

to understand what can’t be understood,

to solve the mystery of the uncreated creator---

always was, always will be,

everywhere there is a where,

no limits of any kind,

Big Being, infinity of infinities.

    December 14, 2008

HOW SWEET IT IS

  HOW SWEET IT IS

La dolce far niente,

no need to look at the clock.

La dolce far niente,

don’t have to write it down.

Tomorrow doesn’t matter;

let go of yesterday.

Revisiting the history of the world,

you discover they took a wrong turn

early on and the rest is comic invention

that cannot be reversed, but you,

melting in the moment, can start anew now.

      August 19, 2003

NEW LIFE

     NEW LIFE

He died

but much to his surprise

came back in a borrowed body

that someone had  left behind:

two eyes to scan the skies

in their beauty ever new,

two ears to hear Beethoven

and his brothers

and all the birds of happiness,

free now from all the inessentials

and misdirections of his first life;

so light he is invisible

to all but the pure of heart

who teach him empathy and compassion,

his mind so clean and clear

all lies and liars are off his radar.

 

Grateful for this second chance,

which to him

is really a first chance,

he does not ask for more

since what he has at last

is more than enough

of everything.

     November 21, 2012

MYSTICAL

MYSTICAL

There are

no mystics,

but there are

mystical moments

when we sense

our oneness

with the earth,

whether on it

or in it,

springtime of youth,

autumn of age,

sea and sun,

life, light,

and the brotherhood

of being;

then chant

a hymn

of gratitude,

sing

a song

of thanksgiving.

November 17, 2012

YOU ARE YOU

YOU ARE YOU

You are you;

seems silly to say,

but it’s true.

You are you,

and you need

to remind yourself

to become

who you are

lest you get

dissolved

into the herd.

November 15, 2012

OF BIRDS AND AUTOS

 OF BIRDS AND AUTOS

The birds arrive at half past five

unless a fallen leaf or two

until they move or fly away

becoming birds again.

 

My backyard birds

of every hue and species

live in peace,

a lesson for us,

except that we’re

too smart to learn.

And as for driverless cars,

will they know

where they’re going

and what will they do

when they get there?

   November 15, 2012

DREAM ON

     DREAM ON

Dreams, dreams, dreams, 

what do they mean? 

Many men have achieved fame and fortune

with their interpretations

(Freud, Adler, Jung, Hall, and Pearls,

to name a few),

all going in different directions,

but no one has solved the mystery

of what happens

in the theater of unconsciousness

when the conscious brain’s on holiday

and the limbic system

(hypothalamus, hippocampus, and amygdala)

takes over.

How can you be both

the star of the performance

and the sole audience,

(not to mention the one who

selects the scenery,

writes the dialogue,

directs the action

and chooses the cast).

On stage and off stage:

one becomes two

or possibly the limbic trio in cahoots

substitutes a stand-in to play the lead.

    November 12, 2012

HALLOWEEN

   HALLOWEEN

(ALL SAINTS EVE)

         I

Be like me,

which is to say.

be completely yourself,

which is anything but me.

Apparent contradiction

will be solved

when we find

the quarks that connect—

oh what fun

to be as one.

         II

Occidental sky at dawn,

panorama of cumuli;

hiding among them

no cloud at all,

but  pale moon

setting in the west,

surrounded by

a crowd of cousins.

        III

As I listen  to

Tchaikovsky’s

 “Swan Lake Suite,”

these images and icons

beg to be put in print,

and who am I to deny them?

  October 31, 2012

WAR

       WAR

Next war,

will we  be

on the winning side

or losing side? 

No need to ask:

there will be

no winning side.

As Einstein,

unsure of the weapons

with which

the next world war

will be fought,

proclaimed:

“World War IV

will be fought

with sticks and stones.”

Grim, grim, grim, indeed. 

This beautiful planet, 

these marvelous  minds

and the magnificent world

that they created.

  November 2, 2012

APPLICATION

 APPLICATION

Next life

jobs will be scarce,

considering the large work force,

so I’m applying early

to be an assistant mixer

of the blues used each day

to color the sky,

hoping to work my way

through the centuries

to becoming one of the artists

who paint the daily masterpiece

for earthlings to behold.

You think

I’m a dreamer,

don’t you?

How right you are!

November 3, 2012

ZERO

      ZERO

Zero times zero is zero,

times two, too,

or any other number.

Time to climb

out of that hole

of nothingness;

start by adding

one and one;

small step,

but still

a new beginning.

November 1, 2012

FUSION NOT FISSION

FUSION NOT FISSION

All works of art

are invitations to noetic fusion,

and once this union of spirit occurs.

the coalescence of energies

will soar together and forever

in the expanding universe of mind.

New note silences no prior sound,

new stroke erases no existing color.

no, the result is harmonic diapason of sound,

chromatic blend of color—

all evolving toward infinity.

      October 27, 2012

A MOVING MESSAGE

 A MOVING MESSAGE

Venus, Morning Star,

has shifted south,

beyond my bedroom’s ken,

but left this message;

“Go outside

or widen your window

of observation. 

After all,

despite

my majesty and beauty,

I lack

all freedom

of movement,

unlike you,

my dear.

    October 27, 2012

THE SWAP

THE SWAP

Morning Star,

Venus,

says:

“Sun’s coming;

I will fade,

and you

will become

the star,

blue star,

in another

planet’s night,

namely mine.

Just relax,

let go,

light, not dark,

light, not heavy, 

slough the stuff

that’s held you back,

led you astray,

return  to core-self,

quarks re-aligned and shining.

Transcendence is waiting.”

  October 18, 2012

THE RACE

THE RACE

First parents

Gay

First parents

No parents

We didn’t make it

Have to try again.

Second parents

Straight

Second parents

Real first parents

Procreation and multiplication

Fresh air and sunshine

For everyone.

BANG!!!

One more world

Mutual respect

For person and property

No lying, no killing

Nothing but happiness

In this paradise of peace

Still waiting

for this world to arrive.

October 15, 2012

CAUTION

 CAUTION

Here, there,

and everywhere,

always was

and always will be,

Infinity its name,

Ubiquity its game. 

Oh little man,

be loving and grateful

for its gift to you

of life on loan,

but understand

that finite mind

cannot grasp

the Infinite

and hence,

be ever cautious

of answers

where

there are

no answers.

October 7, 2012

                                                                                

THE VISIT

              THE VISIT

4 A.M.—give or take  half an hour.

The Morning Star

just outside my bedroom window—

give or take 25 million miles.

Venus, Aphrodite, sister planet,

second from the sun,

in the night sky

only the moon is brighter

in all the universe

she has chosen me,

by accident or design,

who knows?

And this is her message:

“Oh my little brother,

like every thing that’s made,

you and I must fade,

(you much sooner than I) .

Eschew all worldly distractions,

become your authentic self

in full uniqueness,

ever grateful

for your moment,

and if some day

a borrowed light

should come your way

(mine is heliacal)

don’t resist it,

but let it shine,

let it shine,

let it shine.

1. September 27, 2012

RAMBLING ROSE

   RAMBLING ROSE

Who blew the blue away?

Breeze in the trees?

Talking about the sky, of course. 

Who wins the prize for beauty?

Man-made art or nature?

Silly question since

man is part of nature.

One day I’ll want to say,

“I told you so,”

but I won’t because

I never did tell you so. 

Why not? 

Convictions are prisons,

and I never

found the key

to set you free. 

And Nietzsche

slipped

from sanity.

      October 1, 2012

A THING OF BEAUTY

  A THING OF BEAUTY

It took the birds two weeks 

to find the new feeder,

so let the games begin:

avian Olympics of scarlet knights

at play in games of rules unwritten.

It happened at dusk

in my backyard,

and Keats came back

to write of red lifted

to new heights of beauty.

October 4, 2012

THE EAST AGAIN

                     THE EAST AGAIN

                   Sunday morning surprise

                   woke at five

                   beheld low in eastern sky

                   a perfect parallelogram

                   quadrilateral, rhombus, kite.

                                 Jupiter

     crescent moon                                 Aldebaran

                                

                                Venus

 Wanted the world

 to see this celestial jewel,

 but whom could I call

 so early in the morning?

                            So left them

    undisturbed

    in dreamland

    and shared alone

    this lovely sight

         with all

    the lonely sailors

                    lost at sea.

                 July 15, 2012

SCHEDULE

       SCHEDULE

Woulda -coulda-shouldas:

one thing at a time,

planning our little lives

with much pomp

in every circumstance. 

Maybe we need

to let go, loosen up, relax.

With or without us

the world goes on:

sun shines, moon glows,

and Earth speeds through space

without our awareness.

     July 24, 2012

SKY

             

            SKY

Why is the sky more

beautiful these days? 

Enhanced perception of the viewer? 

Honed artistry of the painters? 

Don’t analyze;

just go outside

and gaze with gratitude

at the white puffs

and new blues

of a ceiling

the envy of Michelangelo.

    September 16, 2012

MEANING

      MEANING

What does it all mean?  

Nada, nada, nada. 

Nothing but Isness,

Big Is, always was, always will be,

and its infinite number of toys,

that last as long

as their batteries

can be recharged,

then back to the  nothingness

from which they came. 

This message, maybe,

came from Big Is,

who said,  “Write it down

before your pen runs dry.”

  September 11, 2012

ARE WE THERE YET?

               ARE WE THERE YET?

Not yet

and never will be

since the place you seek

is not on any map

as you continue down

the autobahn of craving

in search of El Dorado

            lured by the world’s false promises

and its insatiable greed for more.

No, not yet

and never will be

because, to quote Miss Stein,

there is no “there” there.

 

So turn around

and begin the long retreat

back to the beginning

in search of  inner richness,

core-self, authenticity, autochthony,

not there but here at last,

“out-Yessing” Molly Blum

in new-found ecstasy.

   September 11, 2012

AUTOBIOG

      AUTOBIOG

A diddle here, a daddle there

but couldn’t pull the trigger

neither to kill nor create

so carried on the long search

for what did not exist

until one day a voice said,

“Give it up, let it go, empty out

and maybe it will find you,”

and finally one day  it did : 

the fullness/emptiness of life within,

no more certitude, no more belief

just a balance of fraction and infinity.

    September 7, 2012

FROM CREATED TO CREATIVE

       FROM CREATED TO CREATIVE

How little we know

about ourselves

and even less

about others.

 

Advantage to the former

if we can only slow down,

turn off the static,

and listen

to the music within

that came

with the original package,

love it, live it,

and learn to respect

the unknown mystery

of all creation.

     September 5, 2012

TELL ALL THE TRUTH

TELL ALL THE TRUTH

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant—

Success in Circuit lies, 

Emily said and I read

but failed to follow her advice.

Consequence for me: 

rejection at first

and finally exile

and a long life on Elba,

where I learned

that life

cannot be defined;  

can only be lived

and fully lived

only if one accepts it

as a wondrous gift

on temporary loan.

August 20, 2012

LIFE

        LIFE

Some say it’s sacred

since they have it

and the ability to describe it. 

Others say it’s cheap;

ask the murderers,

ask the military,

ask the killers,

ask the army.

I say it’s neither;

skip the adjectives,

give us a noun.

And the noun is “gift”. 

Your life is a gift,

a kind of miracle,

like hitting the jackpot,

like winning the lottery. 

Odds were one in three hundred million, 

at the moment of inception,

and you were the one.

So sing a song of Te Deum

and live every day

with joyful gratitude.

    August 5, 2012

ROMANCE IS IN THE AIR

  ROMANCE IS IN THE AIR

Dancing on the deck of the Titanic

as the band plays on and on. 

The moon is bright this festive night

with just a hint of sorrow. 

No need to stop the music now;

we’ll think about that tomorrow.

       August 2, 2012

FELIZ CUMPLEANOS

FELIZ CUMPLEANOS

We touched at the deepest level

and reveled in our union. 

The film that plays over and over inside my head

 is neither silent nor black and white but Technicolor

enriched by the sound of your voice, your laughter

and the way you said my name. 

To ask for more

would show ingratitude

for the many gifts you gave me.

Lou,

March the Two,

the day that life began.

Te Amo—

and that’s not a Mexican cigar.

Jimmy, 3/2/09.

VINCENT VAN CHICAGO

   VINCENT VAN CHICAGO

Say  hi to the Sun,

but do not look him in the eye

except when he is fat and sherry gold

at dusk and dawn, angelus moments

that ought to be observed in silence and awe.

Say hello to the evening star

and remember Number One,

who went to Chicago without

leaving Baton Rouge and then

to dinner at Vincent’s to help her

                        remember and forget

                        the day that she was born:

                        a rose is a rose even in the dark.

Say hello to the heavens,

to the mighty Hunter who rules

the night with  slanted sword

pointed toward your heart.

And to the seven-headed Scorpion

who with his curling tail rubs horizon’s rim.

Say hello to the ebony firmament

freckled with  myriad stars,

silver-voiced spirits of the dead

whose song is lilt that lifts us to eternity.

                                    March 3, 2003

BELIEF

             

              BELIEF

It’s not the matter that matters,

but the numbers that count. 

And when enough believe,

whatever it is that they believe

becomes the truth,

and if it relates to the other world,

the holy truth, the scriptures sacred,

the revelation divine. 

And thus is born another god,

and no one dares to ask,

“How many gods does it take

to make a mess of mankind?”

     August 30, 2010

ILLUSIONS

  ILLUSIONS

A star,

a moon,

an orchard in bloom;

a bird,

a song,

a symphony

of Shostakovich,

who said:

 “The illusions

that sustain us

crumble slowly.”

A word is a thing in itself

but not the thing it stands for.

I’ve seen the moon

and evening star,

connection is clear,

but tenuous

the abstract bridge

of truth and beauty. 

And when it comes to God,

the word, that is,

finite stretches

toward infinity

but endless

is the span.

Words are our world

but can so easily lead us astray.

   August  2010

LISTEN

        LISTEN  

Listen to me

when I say don’t listen to me

but to the sound of your true self,

core center, the voice within,

which the world, fourth world,

the one that man makes up, that world,

tries to drown out,

intimidate with fear and guilt,

silence when it does break through

. 

Don’t listen to me

unless what I say

agrees with the music

that comes from deep within

your own  inner soul.

     June 5, 2010

VENUS AND HER MOON

VENUS AND HER MOON

April evenings

Venus rules the west.

Earthlings gaze in wonder

at her majesty,

unaware her moon,

unseen, unknown, unnamed,

Utopian land of light and laughter,

health and wholeness.

Paradise of peace,

Ares, unneeded.

Clockless world of minds

energized by the noos-juice of now.

      April 15, 2010

MOON MESSAGE

MOON MESSAGE

March moon,

full, aflame,

cinnamon red,

butterscotch yellow,

saffron silver,

sea-foam white

night-rides the sky

bigger and brighter

than any star,

asking me:

“Are you still performing

for the gods of guilt? 

If so,

leave them behind

and find

the new one,

true one,

waiting  

in your inner soul

to set you free,

let you be

the core-self

somehow in touch

with that indestructible piece of you

that will never know nothingness.

March 30, 2010