May 2021 – Page 3 – A Thread You Follow

Bidden

I said, "Once bidden,
I abide."

She replied, "It is as if one never 
went to the principal's office."

Confused, again, I asked, "And
isn't it attention that leads
to taking care?"

She answered, "Remember,
though we come from the middle
we live now on the edges."

Smiling, "Steadfast devotion
makes for a great theme party."

She said, "You would make a
great entertainer role model."

The Middle

There IS life in the middle
	though the in-between 
	tends to get lost
	in the midst of the
	glitz of glamor 
	and the angered angst of
	"I didn't have nuthin'
	and look what I made of myself."
	At least,
	middling,
	one can shout the words that dazzle
	and create an idol
	for the audience making them believe
	...as if you still don't have anything
but are doing just fine.

change

when 
the seeds 
of parables
plant 
the first steps
of a walk
toward
an answer

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now. – Romans 8:22

Birther,
First One,
Original Giver,
Primordial Cause,
how often have you groaned
in your labor pains?  In ours,
so many cries of infinite pain
for infinite wants meant to 
dazzle our souls for a brief
time.  Now, how will you
answer each and every one?
Amen.

A beginner’s mind

Enjoying the mess of wildflowers
springing up across a well-manicured
lawn.  Seeing masks on the walls
and in the clouds for the first time 
again.  Following the dart of a doe
leaping over the boundary fencing.  
Arriving at the possibility that yesterday
turned the milk sour.  Answering 
the call of the cardinal, What cheer?

Restless Again

The hand of a rich man
spoon feeds information.

Columns fill with check
marks under Items Done.

Poems appear as if dropped
from the hallway ceiling.

Ribbons stream across
doorways of energy.

Interest in the difficulties 
of the righteous wanes.

Problematic lines of scripture
demand rising attention.

Crucial mistakes postpone
entertainment services.

The voice of the mother singing 
"You Are My Sunshine" dwindles.

For What?

Proximity to power in unlikely places calls
on Lady Luck to provide Get Out of Jail Free
Cards to those who believe that with enough
faith the healing of the nations can occur
along dusty red dirt roads & people who feel
the power of the heel can empty themselves
of the piss & shit created by ingesting the mess
from above in the hope that the powerlessness
of broken-winged butterflies transforms
the small narratives and pig stories & call upon
God to become bigger & more possible thus
liberating rich fools & poor diggers of soil into
the question: Who is fighting for what?

The Pond’s Edge

crab apple petals
come together 
at the pond’s edge 
floating pink

sometimes

sometimes
i wake
with the sheets and blankets
all thrown around me 
as if a great struggle 
with an angel 
occurred 
during the night

Nibbles at the Edge

Ordering, I said, "A bit of this 
and a bit of that, please."

She raised her eyebrows.  "You
know, all of this nibbling around
the edges eats at the soul."

I lifted one of my eyebrows.  "I
thought you were an atheist."

"Guffaw," she guffawed.  "Soul
is simply self with a hole."

I called the waiter back, "I'd
like to change my order to a
little bit more of this and a
lot more of that, please."

She smiled.  "I believe you have
perfected the art of ordering
for the sake of our ancestors."