I don’t take these things lightly just because they are in a poem. Light comes from all directions, loops the fanciful around lust and commitment and brings the people who work the land into harmony with those who seek and pray and sing. And those who make poems. There is a giant Black Locust I…

I remember the land, its curve, its solitary sky, its fiery rivers, its inability to hold even the faintest rite of even the faintest spring before its time. It is the land I left and only return to in these quiet nights, in this open field, lit by the lights of a small Midwestern city,…

I have three very unique and wonderful brothers. One is the sort that will call the restaurant during your birthday dinner and pay for your wine over the phone, then text you later and instruct you to have Chartreuse for dessert. The other two brothers would never do that, although they have their own particular…

I’ve been waiting three years for a decent snow. Last night’s walk was pristine, not a breath of wind, not a cloud in the sky save for a small bank in the east glowing orange and pink as the sun sets. The snow marks its territory, covering the remains of 2020, soaking it into the…

There was more to the New Year’s Eve parties than just the food and the second line parade at midnight. A lot happened in-between. But first, a favorite story about prepping for the party. The deep(ish) cleaning took place in the days after Christmas, but the day of the party was its own special kind…

It’s a bit of a curse, this being born on New Year’s Eve. The typical birthday party, by obligation, rises to a higher level, or at least has the potential. At the big house on Holyoke, it became an annual event, the one time each year where the house got a deep cleaning, where special…

It’s a matter of folding. Folding back the clouds to expose the hard white nipple of the sky. She arches her back, finds the curve at the edge of the world, then relaxes, folding one galaxy into another, folding one dream into the one that has just begun. The great sleep is here. Close your…

Neblina is another Spanish word I learned during my time in South Texas. It refers to the lightest mist possible, where the water droplets seem to be suspended in the air. You’re basically just walking through a cloud. Today, there was rain all day, but it had let up by the time I went for…

The coyotes understand that my body is speaking an ancient language, one they can almost understand. They circle by with yips and yaps, the leader gives a gruff bark, gather up, press, release. The moon is on the rise, always on the rise , always waiting, always balanced on one side or the other. Step,…

I first learned this as a Spanish word although the English is quite similar. It happened in a poem that wasn’t just about the edge of day, but also about the edge of a relationship. It happened in a poem being written by two poets. It became the title of the poem. Those tricky poets,…