Turquoise [Haiku]

from hot, white sand:
the turquoise sea beyond
gives illusions of cool.

Crisis Arises [Free Verse]

Crisis arises
From the depths
Of intended perfection --
"Intended" because all
We can ever do is
Aim & release.
It is more an act of luck
To hit the bullseye
Than to miss.
Bullseyes don't occur because
Of a lack of adverse forces
At work.
They occur because of some
Fortuitous balancing
Of adverse forces.

“Have you ever made a just man?” by Stephen Crane [w/ Audio]

"Have you ever made a just man?"
"Oh, I have made three," answered God,
"But two of them are dead,
And the third --
Listen! Listen!
And you will hear the thud of his defeat."

Green Fort [Haiku]

mossy-walled:
the seaside fort blends
with jungle backdrop.

Sleeping Dog [Haiku]

waves crash on rocks;
distant lightening flickers.
dog sleeps - unstirring.

Foul Wind [Lyric]

Trees are wagging,
Whipping, and waving
That were still but
A moment ago.
Dark clouds snuck in
With pattering rain,
But, oh, how those
Foul winds do blow!

“The earth has many keys” (1775) by Emily Dickinson [w/ Audio]

The earth has many keys,
Where melody is not
Is the unknown peninsula.
Beauty is nature's fact.

But witness for her land,
And witness for her sea,
The cricket is her utmost
Of elegy to me.

Night Swimming [Free Verse]

Trudging into lapping waves
On a dim and dusky eve.

Chest deep
One pops up, pressing one's chest
Onto the water,
And swims toward a distant
Silhouetted rock outcrop.

But it doesn't stay silhouetted.

Soon, one is heading into
A grand, black abyss,
There is no shape in this world,
Only the feel of limbs -- pulling & kicking.

Sounds grow ever more feeble --
And ever more rare --
Until the smell of seawater becomes
A bright and vivid sensory experience --
Layered & textured.

Rolling onto one's back, one can see
Patches of sparkling stars
In the cloud gaps.

One lays upon the waves --
Feeling as though one conforms to them
As one floats like a piece of driftwood --
And sees the twinkle of distant stars,
In a world too vast to understand.

“Loss and Gain” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow [w/ Audio]

    When I compare
What I have lost with what I have gained,
What I have missed with what attained,
Little room do I find for pride.

I am aware
How many days have been idly spent;
How like an arrow the good intent
Has fallen short or been turned aside.

But who shall dare
To measure loss and gain in this wise?
Defeat may be victory in disguise;
The lowest ebb is the turn of the tide.

Stout Clouds [Haiku]

stout white clouds
drift low over mountains
as if they might crash.