Testify

Testify

–

Let us pray;

That moons beget suns

And give birth unto stars

That winds bring on rains to blossom perchance

And spirit so sways as in song and in dance

–

Live your dreams

Walk those streams

Pluck the strings

And testify

–

Bleed atop mountains

Search the bottoms of fountains

For that emerald amongst the coin

–

Moving through quatrains

Dangles prancing on bead chains

Are the bangles that flesh out our lives

–

Praying for moonrise

For reflections in your eyes

Thus grasses in growing reach bliss

–

This is my sermon

The seed and pulp of the pulpit

Fill the plate with action not talk

–

Walk these streams

Live out your dreams

Polish the strings

And testify

–

And ask questions anew

Such as is there yet magic?

–

Do the rhythms of the earth

Really come from such rhyme?

Can thunderous skies

Bring on the sublime?

–

Inhale pearls at the gates

And feel it fulfill you

Breathe, that birds know of flight

–

So live out your dreams

And walk in those streams

Lend shine to these strings

Be all which that brings

–

And testify

–

e

The River of Air

 

The River of Air

 

Breaths timed to heartbeats

As scarlet drummings tell

Of cakewalks through stumbles

Eyelids lit electric blue

 

A cloud calls my name

 

I fly in dreams

Floating among flashes

Thrashed by thunder

To reach for your hand

 

Fingers entwine in the darkness

Dripping with droplets

Mired of mist and

So praying for dapples

 

Should the sun rise in time

 

To swim on sunbeams

And stroll the avenues

Railed with wrought iron;

Diving for brass

 

In the river of air

 

e

 

Of Lover’s Silhouettes

 

 

Of Lover’s Silhouettes

 

For as wind and as flame

May ease this pain

And mute the scarlet of blossoms

Deep in shadow…

 

With crown of grain and fireflies

Bereft of slumber’s dream arise

Bearing wise the blue of roses

I call the moon to court

 

She floats to me on skirts of silver

Mists obscuring all aquiver

With liquid and argent lips

And urgent eyes…

 

Vapors parting

The thrill of notes in sway

I embrace the dance…

Oh to frame the heavens

As I adore an angel’s face

That bears traces both

Of bosom, and of lace

 

If I could but breathe

I would proclaim the stars

As the dew upon your hair

Our witness the reflection

As a single droplet trembles

Aching to drip again

To tumble forth…

Into my willing hands

 

And though the air is still

The rivers of your breath

Those waters of your intentions

Flow though me with a gasp

As my tears lay their salts

On the seas of your tranquility

 

These seeds lain in furrows and

Fertilized by the storyteller’s wares

Will recall the shine of moonlight

And it’s reflection…

Upon the mirrors of lover’s silhouettes

Until our eyes both, are long closed

 

e

 

The Cuckoo’s Tale

 

 

The Cuckoo’s Tale

 

Till the dawn breaks

Darkness covers us in blankets

Fingers of shadow

Exploring every crevice

 

Street light invades the blinds

White stripes on walls

Warmed by a candle’s flicker

And breaths that had quickened

 

A fan pulses

Looking left and then right

Brushing the mist and steam from our eyes

Then glancing away…

 

We care not

For that glow to come

The twitters of waking birds

Merely the lullabies of liquid’s loss

 

A song of tides

 

The lift of your wave

A suspension of gravity

An invitation to breathe

The smoke of stars

 

To gift the rings of planets

 

To circle one another endlessly

Swirling in spirals of paisley

Beads of dew on a spider’s web

Each an image of us in the infinite

 

The bells of our choir ringing

A cock’s crow to the bedtime of stars

That last meteor’s streak…

Simply salt on the Cuckoo’s tale

 

e

 

The Orange Cat

 

 

 

The Orange Cat

 

This place has history

Coffee and floor boards

That floated up one day

When the river ran dry

 

Ancient clapboard strains

That recall the scent of pastels

The rose of palettes, painters

Abandoned by the roadside

 

Air blows in from the gulf

Or is that silken voice

An older one…

These walls can speak

 

Of glittering painted masks

Who’s empty eyes still see

Dolls and befuddled teddy bears

Watching cobwebs wave

 

Of candlelit, flickering corners

Sparking to the blues box

The smoke of phantom rhythms

Stepping to the bridge

 

Of swinging in chorus

As shear curtains sway

In the arms of shadows

Dressed to kill

                                                 

Of feathers and fleece flying

And crumpled sheets and pillow cases

As peppermint begets lavender

And the ayes have it

 

Of laughing in liquid Luna

That wink in the windows

Brushing peach blossoms

With the blush of fruit

 

Of bare feet padding the floor in darkness

The swell of a timeless warmth

As love settles back into bed

Eyes lit in a cigarette’s glow

 

Of breaths turning in whisper’s hush

Black velvet, the mist of crepe myrtles

As spirits cakewalk though the house

And the orange cat gives chase

 

e

 

Close Your Eyes

 

 

Close Your Eyes

 

Puffs of smoke limbo on the levy

A jester with a crown of vines

That mocking bird plays for snakes

As washboards rapping the blues

Dream these spoons would chance

Again to make the sun dance

And the river rolls on…

 

Trees all awhirl in azure

Lazy clouds leaning, lead

Grape dappled steps to samba

That silver wind swaying

These ancient ways aflame

Guilding the paths waters knew

Before they remembered rain

 

The blessing of Winter’s heat

Air’s kiss to waking flesh

A tongue recalling it tastes

That soars towards light

On wings bells tolled

When they could ring no more

Yet dreamt still of song

 

Only these grasses

Tasseled tips waving in gold

Hold my feet to the ground

Only love opens my hands

Palms raised

Eyes closed

For fear of flying

 

One can breathe too much

Oft I’ve heard it said,

Use up those breezes that blow

Drink too much from that well that sings

And court disaster above and below

Cast mountains on these sands while you can

And make of yourself some islands

 

So suckle the milk of tangerine skies

Imagine laughing glasses cracking wise

Drink the mist from a cool hollow still

Places where only the children will

Sip slowly as we in their voices see

The simplest of choices thee

Just close your eyes and be

 

 

e

 

In Down

In Down

Drums drums, drums

Fingers drumming

Blood pounding

Voodoo is on the air

Ice ice, ice

Shivers icicle slivers

Skin crawls

Water drips clear

Sky steel blue

A breeze tongues stick to

A collage of frozen cocktails

Shaking in sidewalk chalk

Dream, jungle sleeps

Birds dance in puffy suits

Jealous of barrels burning

Lost along the white way

Winter burns seconds

As heat chills in sanctuary

Trading ashes and sack cloth

For linen, laughter and tears

A frosty clock ticks

Captive the cuckoo counts

Swings of sun winks and shadows

Scudding clouds and moonbeams

Warm buttered breads

Jam, bacon and biscuits

Ovens of steaming flesh await

The tea pot’s whistle

But magic lays thawing

Chimes a silent yawn

As hips sway forgotten

Snuggling still in down

e

Lullabies of Illumination

 

Lullabies of Illumination

 

Cars roll bye

As the Jazz plays

Base from the highway thumps

But the bone is missing

Lost to the blare of horns

As skeletal fingers in coat sleeves

Tap those keys just right

 

Sway the breeze elastic

Congestion and beat blending

A color’s dance on simmer

Street the heat spectrum visible

Even the cool awaits that drop

A mist of gathering storm’s sweat

A tympanic talking drum’s conga

 

The calm before my ears ring

That silence begging syncopation

The give and take of heart and feet

Hands breathe skin flushed rhythm

Rhyme no time man scat man scat

Watch me pull a lion out of my hat

With your ears…

 

Ink makes the most lovely tunes

Words the birth of star lit morns

An heir to the accompaniment

Of storms and shadows deep

Asleep as this dreamer reaps

A cosmos of ice and flame

In lullabies of illumination

 

e

 

Near Bayou

 

 

Near Bayou

 

It is a warm place

This nest I’ve found

Soft and warm

And in tragical disarray

So the leaves of my past

Blend right in

 

Camouflage gone

The color of my feathers

A freak flag flown

The silver of my mane

Asking questions of sandals

A fisherman might have worn

 

I am transformed

By the grace of live oaks

A church of waving mosses

Singing hallelujah and

Taken to the river

To be cleaned

 

A journey past dragons

Through mists and fire

As the ground rumbles beneath

Tip toeing past sleeping giants

Who dream of windmills

and braver men than I

 

But still my wings appear

In time to see the Moon rise

And follow her song to the sea

To a place where the air is new

And the green has unfailing eyes

That catch me looking back

 

There’s a smoke in the trees

Where I come from

A little boy played there

A long time ago

I still remember his face

And his dog

 

I want a dog again

Though the boy can wait 

I’ll never forget him 

As I play an adult

Strollin’ Ole’ Muddy

Cane pole in hand

 

Granted freedom

Blessed of blossom

Borne by the road

I’ve come to rest

On a delta blue

Somewhere, near bayou

 

e

 

We Go On

 

 

We Go On

 

I set about to write the perfect love poem

One of water’s flow over mossy stones

Near the edges of the waving sedge

Where laughter lay, naming clouds

Till thunder chased us soaking

Splashes through the puddles

To the hayloft in the barn

Where the brood mares

Witnessed our flame

 

A lyrically melodic lullaby

Sunset reflections in portraiture

Our stories a song on butterfly wings

Born from dust, long for flight

 

Turned to light

 

Amethyst and daffodils

Baby oil and bubble bath

Sleepy eyes in candle light

Checking the rise of your breast

 

Snuggle tight in double sighs

Struggle smite as trouble dies

Rubble light our bubble flies

Grasp the moon ‘fore the stars slip away

 

Shoot me if I rhyme

But it’s living time

There’s frost on the bloom

But we’re looking fine

 

Take my hand, kiss the air, look away

 

Bend and sashay

Step two three

Twirl and plie’

Curtsy and flash the air

 

With your eyes

 

I am your slave

And my fingers bleed

But the muse demands

We go on…

 

I light your darkness

As you reflect my flame

Without your cool

 Merely heat, I would remain

 

Fill me…

And I pledge to be forever empty

A vessel for the rivers of you

That which could never be contained

 

So shoot me if I rhyme

But it’s living time

There’s frost on the bloom

But we’re looking fine

 

Take my hand, kiss the air, look away

 

e