9 Haiku

Biking before dawn—
scratching of a dry leaf blown
across the asphalt

Dawn: climbing the stairs

out of the subway station—
giant harvest moon!

Warm evening churchbells—

in the back of a pickup
a man is napping

*

Morning commuters—

squatting on a power line,
raven cleans his feet

A puff of milkweed

climbing the noon sky—small
as an airplane, then gone

Parrots shriek at dusk

from their hotel courtyard cage—
my wine’s rather sour

*

Beware the black foot

of an ant on a mountain
many miles away

Religious statue—

crouched on one knee, searching high
heaven for a god

Trying to escape

the harsh light, in the cool grove
we seek the sunshine



.

He Said Get In

A man of rank nods at a cannon
And then he … heavily
Says “Get in”

A ragged gang gathered behind him

Angrily … yells at me
“WE WILL WIN”

Oh it’s a bad bad crowd I know

A stunned girl clutches a tabloid

Nods her head … at what she read and says
“Do you know?”

Her mother standing beside her

Lifts her eyes … to the sky and cries
“NO NO NO”

Oh there’s no way out I know

An old man gestures around him

“See for yourself … all this wealth …
Empty air”

And then I hear bird sing

Liquidly … into me
From somewhere

Oh this I know I know

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