Careening

Little Miss Independent
is careening (it's the stage between walking and running)
around the library.
She's heading for the door,
her eyes are gleaming,
and it's a little scary.

Some Days It's Not

I'm on a roll.
Today's my day,
and nothing's getting
in my way.
I'm gaining speed,
I'm gaining ground,
and wondering why
somedays I'm down.
On days that it's easy
to act on my thoughts
it's hard to remember
why some days it's not.

Cloud-Glasses

The strange yellow glow
of this pressure system (low)
reminds me of the cloud-glasses
that we used to have
to wear when it was grey
to make it seem a sunny day
but it just seemed cloudy-yellow
like today.

Past

A month at twenty-five
is like a week at seventeen
is like a day at six or seven
if you know what I mean.
And I guess that when I'm older
even years will seem as fast
as each shrinks in proportion
to my quantity of past.

Deep Pockets

I have a friend with deep pockets
full of truth and grace…
pockets so deep in pants so tall,
and sometimes it's hard to see His face.

The Slow Process of Making Friends

The slow process of making friends
with people who swim in front of me like fish behind glass
and who would probably not enjoy coming to this side to sit next to me on the couch
and who, like me, would probably find it hard to breath sometimes,
is very slow.

No One Needs Poetry

No one needs poetry.
They need food
and shelter,
hope, peace and love.
But since we don't all have
all these things
we need poetry.
But if we all had
food, shelter, hope, peace and love,
then we would not need poetry.
But then we would want it
all the more.

Don't Go Outch

I'd advise: do not go out
when there is no wind.
A mosquito will slurp you up his snout
and spit you out again.

At Once

There are lots of things that I can do,
but really shouldn't do at once.
For instance, it would not be shrewd
to brush my teeth while I eat lunch.

The Rain Is Like a Curtain

The rain is like a curtain,
the drops are like the cloth,
that thick and heavy velvet
with corners chewed by moths.
The world outside's a theater.
We turn the script's first page.
Until the rain stops falling,
we'll practice here, backstage.

Secret

Who do you love?
Some you seem to love
because you yourself
love to laugh,
love to feel good,
love to feel loved.
Think of the person
for whom
you could always keep a secret.

Coffee Cake

There is no coffee in this cake,
despite what you might think.
They must call it that because
it's good enough to drink.

My Sister

Now my sister's all grown up.
 That is, she's graduated.
  But if she still finds more to learn,
   well, I guess we are related.

Honors

Some are good at music,
and some are good at math.
Some people get a sentence,
and some a paragraph.
A name sounds good in honors,
a name sounds good in praise,
and a soul sounds best in sweet, still rest,
with humble hands upraised.

Trucks

There are trucks on this road,
lots and lots of trucks,
truck after truck on this road
and they all are filled with stuff
like food, machines, and soda pop
and mail and bales and things to shop.
And here we are between it all,
it's like we're at a mall or store.
Except when it's here on the road,
we'd never ask for more.

Progress

Some progress seems to happen by
just keeping up with time.
Some progress must be built from wreckage
time has left behind.

The Hills Are Alive

The hills are alive
with grass to my knees
and bugs and alfalfa––
all music to me!

Prose

Put a tune in your head while you're writing
and you'll end up writing a poem.
So if it is prose that you're after,
just leave all that music alone.

Except Rest

I always have something to do,
but I'm not as busy as you.
So if you need someone to help,
I gladly would offer myself,
although you seem to do it all best
when you do it yourself (except rest).

Flowering Tree

I'd like to be
a flowering tree
with toes in the water
and hair in the breeze,
as strong as an oak
and as light as a feather,
except I want to bloom
through each season's weather.

Chartreuse

Justice, now I know why you chose chartreuse.
It seemed an ugly color; now I know the truth.
It comes out of the trees
before it turns to dark green leaves.
It's the color of spring, the color of new.

Do Better

When we know better,
we do better,
they say.
Not necessarily,
but where there's a will
there's a way.

Do More

There is a voice that says, "Do more, do more"
and that these things should all be done by now.
This voice would be so easy to ignore
if its lie weren't also true somehow.

Some Things New

This computer that I type on
will not always be mine.
Like all machines like this,
it belongs more to a time.
But we can stretch its life,
or rather, we can stretch its use,
with some things new– a trackpad
and a battery with more juice.

Start

My list of things to do today
is long but not quite done.
I need to add "start" to the list–
this task's the hardest one.

Story

Prairie Home Companion
is my companion
as I drive home across the prairie.
At church they asked where I'm from
and I said where I live
but isn't there more to everyone's story?
In Lake Wobegon,
all the women are strong,
and I'm sure they've lived there their whole lives.
But even up there,
life is not always fair
or simple enough to be summarized.

Strong North Wind

Face the strong north wind
and just keep pedaling.
As long as your feet move
your wheels will spin.
The fastest lose all feeling
in their frozen legs and feet.
The fact that you keep going
means you'll win.

Not Just Nice

Oh, let me not be like today,
sunshine spread across my face,
but with a heart as cold as ice.
Let me be loving, not just nice.

First Things First

First things first,
pick the thing that is worst
and change it.
Then do what's next,
but don't change what's best.
Just rearrange it.

Funds

At the zoo, there are jars with signs
filled with coins and fives and ones
to help animals not go extinct
since dinosaurs died of lack of funds.