There was an explorer named Christopher Columbus who entered the New World to fanfare of trumpets. He thought the Bahamans were Hindu Brahmins. His map wasn't so good as his compass.
Columbus Limerick
2
A long time ago,
I listened to the audiobook of
Kerouac's "On the Road."
In that format,
I became aware of how often
Kerouac used the word
"rickety."
Almost as aware as I became
of how often Twain uses
the N-word in Huck Finn
when I unwisely listened to
that audiobook while driving
through downtown Atlanta
with my windows rolled down.
I'm now reading Hunter Thompson's
"Kingdom of Fear," and I've become
aware that Thompson had a love
of the word "gibberish" almost on par
with Kerouac's love of "rickety."
And I think about how much beautiful
rickety gibberish I've read from those
authors, and what a fine
thing it is if one can write
rickety gibberish that stands up
under its own weight.

guardian dogs,
sculpted or painted: how do
they fool the spirits?

grand monuments,
overgrown with moss & weeds,
for Dead long forgotten.

boats rise & roll
with constant motion; as
gentle waves lap ashore.