Gunsmoke [Free Verse]

the acrid smell
of 
burnt gun-smoke
dulls
in the mind,
but not 
in the air

the brain tires of smelling it,
and so it fades,
but
it has nowhere to go --
not in this violent place
of dead & heavy air

Mongoose [Haiku]

a pausing mongoose 
looks at me, 
as I look at it

Plotting Crows [Haiku]

two crows stand
on a branch in parallel;
the plot is afoot

Iron String [Free Verse]

Emerson said,
"Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string."


REM said,
"What's the frequency, Kenneth?"


Will Kenneth's waves propagate down the line?

If so, would they add to,
or cancel out, 
the waves of others?

That depends on the frequency, Kenneth!

I guess that's why Michael Stipe
took such an impassioned interest 
in the question.

Is it even a good thing if one's waves
add to those of another?

Might it not become disharmonious,
like a runaway washing machine,
shaking violently,
parts flying through the air
in smooth ballistic arcs
only to bounce and clatter 
in dull discordance.

Does one's iron string
even need to come into contact
with Kenneth's? 

Might not the wave energy 
passing through the air
stir up a resonance in one's bones?

Questions, such as these, haunt me --
not to mention:

Who, exactly, is Kenneth?

Grass Yellow Butterfly [Tanka]

the Grass-Yellow finds
a place in the dry leaves
where its green tint
is more ornamental 
than it is camouflage

Nearsighted [Haiku]

across the valley,
looms a majestic mountain...
if one sees that far

Orange Lichen [Haiku]

two stupas stand
beside a lonely road,
adorned by lichen

Meditation Chamber [Common Meter]

He sat and stilled his weary mind,
and his thoughts slowed their flow.
Until he was a ceaseless void
with nowhere left to go.