“Song of the Open Road” (11 of 15) by Walt Whitman [w/ Audio]

Listen! I will be honest with you,
I do not offer the old smooth prizes, but
offer rough new prizes,
These are the days that must happen to you:
You shall not heap up what is call'd riches,
You shall scatter with lavish hand all that
you earn or achieve,
You but arrive at the city to which you were
destin'd, you hardly settle yourself to
satisfaction before you are call'd by an
irresistible call to depart,
You shall be treated to the ironical smiles
and mockings of those who remain
behind you,
What beckonings of love you receive you
shall only answer with passionate kisses of
parting,
You shall not allow the hold of those who
spread their reach'd hands toward you.

Barbed-Wire Highway [Haiku]

barbed-wire strand:
a two-way ant highway,
around the pasture.

DAILY PHOTO: Lake Reflections

Schrödinger’s Dragonfly [Haiku]

dragonfly,
cool autumn morn:
dead or in thaw?

“Song of the Open Road” (10 of 15) by Walt Whitman [w/ Audio]

Allons! the inducements shall be greater,
We will sail pathless and wild seas,
We will go where winds blow, waves dash,
and the Yankee clipper speeds by under
full sail.

Allons! with power, liberty, the earth, the
elements,
Health, defiance, gayety, self-esteem,
curiosity;
Allons! from all formules!
From your formules, O bat-eyed and
materialistic priests.

The stale cadaver blocks up the passage--
the burial waits no longer.

Allons! yet take warning!
He traveling with me needs the best blood,
thews, endurance,
None may come to the trial till he or she
bring courage and health,
Come not here if you have already spent the
best of yourself,
Only those may come who come in sweet
and determin'd bodies,
No diseas'd person, no rum-drinker or
venereal taint is permitted here.

(I and mine do not convince by arguments,
similes, rhymes,
We convince by our presence.)

Combative Kittens [Senryū]

three lil kittens
rotate through one-on-one
combat — tag-team style.

DAILY PHOTO: Nam Dee Waterfall, Luang Namtha

Resonance [Haiku]

in the temple yard,
a bell clangs three times, and
vibrates beyond silence.

“Song of the Open Road” (9 of 15) by Walt Whitman [w/ Audio]

Allons! whoever you are come travel with
me!
Traveling with me you find what never tires.

The earth never tires,
The earth is rude, silent, incomprehensible
at first, Nature is rude and
incomprehensible at first,
Be not discouraged, keep on, there are
divine things well envelop'd,
I swear to you there are divine things more
beautiful than words can tell.

Allons! we must not stop here,
However sweet these laid-up stores, however
convenient this dwelling we cannot
remain here,
However shelter'd this port and however
calm these waters we must not anchor
here,
However welcome the hospitality that
surrounds us we are permitted to receive
it but a little while.

Moonrise [Free Verse]

Moonrise --
big and bright --
over a quiet town.

People stare --
alone but simultaneously --
'til the milky light
hurts their eyes.

This moon reminds them
of one from childhood
but seems unlike so many since...

But it's all one moon.