-the day porters-

i stepped into the morning
elevator with an old woman
who cares
for the building and
her cleaning cart
which is
a trash
can on a cart

told her i’d heard
something funny
that
someone had
referred to her as
the “day porter”

i’d smoked with her
outside and often but
to this she didn’t smile
or grit her sandstone
teeth or even lift her
blasted old face from its
vacant
downward
fix

then i noticed her hand
  a grandmother’s hand
on the rim of the can or
the pit of my stomach and
her mouth i swear didn’t
move when she asked

if there was a dead baby in here
we wouldn’t notice the elevator
is taking us
would we?

-hand held something-

                                                      for allison


like the want of eye
in the eye
of a doll
held tightly
in little arms

little arms
     littler world

-coyote decoy-

just as quickly
we're burdened
with

there’s more

to not eating
the rose

-damn beautiful orchard-

i’ve been sitting in this orchard
awhile

it’s the last place
i want to be

and as such
a perfect place
to find enough distractions
laying around

keeping me maudlin

after a few days
i noticed something freaky

my eyes
though cold
from staring
wet
from crying
somehow manage
to burn

heh

and so i’ve been quite happy
sitting here
contemplating my foolish
observation

while staring at nothing
but this beautiful
damn orchard

thinking perhaps i’ve discovered
the very reason
beauty
is

and now here you finally come

dressed in the orchard’s mist