On Halloween

It’s Halloween today, but I’m not scared;
I have no costume, and there are no kids
Arriving at my door, the trash can lids
Aren’t under threat (only raccoons have dared),
In fact someone suggested no one cared,
But I’m expecting goblins, katydids,
And teenaged troublemakers with their bids
To change my mind now. One is raven-haired,

Reminding me of all I’ve lost: my heart,
My time, my candy, and my self-respect.
I’m trying, but it’s been hard to detect
A human being inside me, the part
That matters: fire and harmony and art.
I’m thoroughly all right now, and I’m wrecked.

When I’m Gone

Not now — don’t tell me that it’s closing time;
I just got here, and music is still playing,
The barflies haven’t finished what they’re saying —
Something about strained mercy and feigned crime —
That lady over there has gummed the lime
In her Tequila Sunrise, started praying,
Laid down the room key for the place she’s staying,
And some guy grabbed it who looks like a mime.

When will I understand what’s going on?
Will I get in a fight? Could I get kissed?
I have more questions (yes, I have a list):
Will we see stars? Or will we see the dawn?
Will anybody miss me when I’m gone?
The barkeep answers with an iron fist.

We Watch the Ocean

We watch the ocean, hoping that the tide
Brings treasure, but we know it never will.
Hope is belief, a kind of useless skill
Explaining why we’re never satisfied
But keep on waiting. It’s a desperate ride
To nowhere, leaving us here, feeling ill.
The ocean’s promise, that it won’t fulfil,
Makes us wait here, until the waves subside.

They do, and then there’s nothing more to say
Until tomorrow, when we’ll watch once more
As long as hearts, lined up along the shore,
Remember what it felt like yesterday,
When all the universe was still at play,
And we had dreams. It’s dreams that we adore.

What I See

I see your picture hanging on the wall,
The very definition of disgraced.
It’s easy to exhibit my distaste
Without an effort, or a quick phone call
To reassure your enemies, to stall
While checking out the challenges we faced
When you attacked. We’re ready now, well braced
Against you and your tendency to brawl.

You say you represent our destiny,
But that’s just garbage; you’re as well aware
As we are that you set fire to your hair
And claimed it was spontaneous. I see
The crap that you’ve been doing recently.
Stop all this nonsense. Just stop right there.