New Beach Walk Poem (Long and Rough)

About how I had seen the guy sitting
There in front of Denny’s for days
Bike beside him nailed to a tree
The heat oppressive already today
I walked slowly knowing he would ask me for help

I turned and looked deep into a pair of brilliant
Blue eyes and said, I bet you need a boost as
I unrolled a twenty off that little wad of special money I carry just for this
He puzzled looking at the money. Been a while since he’d seen a twenty
So I said, You know that’s a lot more than money. Your
Life will change now, it’s all made of love. That’s when
He told me his story, pointing to the bike he said
That’s my truck, I went bankrupt, used to lay flooring
For $18.50 an hour in Seattle, then it all fell apart so
I moved to where I had lived in Santa Cruz I tried for 5 years
Then hit L.A. looking for work Got two months worth then
They said try San Diego, but I broke my leg when I got here
and ended up in a shelter with a backpack that had
My last $15 and my ID which someone stole before I woke up at 6 A.M.
With my ID gone, I can’t get food stamps or a new ID
Cause I don’t have an address and the place that
Gives homeless people mailboxes has a waiting list of 200.

All I said this time was, you know I see you. I hear you and I see
you are a beautiful reflection of love, and you know you are
Loved now so everything gonna be all right now, It’s gonna be all right. He
Looked at me and at that minute he knew and so he stood up
On the leg that was in a brace, stood strong and asked for a hug.
God! This is always required of me, it keep me humble lest I feel like some f…ing saint
, knowing I am sometimes a complete germaphobe,
though I know better and don’t believe in anything but love. I went in for the hug,
You are loved, I said and I really did see him, as I patted his back over a shoulder
That hadn’t been washed in a while his body was touching me full on but when I said goodbye
And left to walk the beach where all the people who passed me smiled and said hello even though this
Is a totally unfriendly beach and people look at you like you’re crazy if you greet them.

Half hour later when I got back to my car he was gone, all trace of him. I notice
That most all of the homeless on the beach right now are new. One guy was
Sleeping next to his guitar he had wrapped in a superman bag. Some are
Really young others more seasoned have found their way here for me look at and love.
Sometimes throw in a twenty or a hug or both,
God, I thought, when I get to see like this it makes me so happy.

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Mirrors

days grab at the
skirt i never wear, the
one my mother wanted for me

at night i see dark clouds gathering
bringing me nothing but sweet relief
whether i sleep or just write in the night

my lover is wife and strife sometimes
everyone and the ants and the bees are
kin to me though i am not an orphan alone

peace means i have been quiet and listened
feel your lips on the hurt of how i see myself
till in the morning i wake amazed at my reflection

Just Wondering

i do not curse the world too often
striving to really see it, not the sodden
pictures brought to us by bought and sold
media delivering what they think we want to buy
but from somewhere beyond eyesight, suddenly
the boardwalk i have walked for a year almost daily
praying for sight to see the light of each one i pass especially
the lost vets, the homeless helpless souls who frequent the benches
but lately the place is clear almost clean and i wonder how that happened.

Bella Ponderosa Beauty that makes the heart ache.

it was long ago i would
walk out long and early
tasting the morning dew
my tongue in ecstasy i
would lay me down under
my friend Bella Ponderosa
feeling her joy juice dripping
into blossoms male and female
that after her time was come
would birth her children in
tiny spindly needle baring trees
she would gather in her skirts
while i would then be careful not
to trample while we lay together.

No Dirt on My Hands

Harvest moon rises leaving
Me without a crop
Who delight in the seed
The coming to life
Sweet tomato on the lips
Dribbling down the shirt
The blue potatoes hiding
Under her leaf skirt and then
The treasure unearthed I am
Bereft, left here on the beach
Like a whale with no offspring
I long for the sweet loam of my
Father and Grandfather who like me still
Carry the genes of our farmer tribe the
American Indians who first got the bug and loved the
Direction of the moon and stars from which
We knew we came who married European
Ancestors and taught them this passion so especially on the night
Of harvest, I’m moon struck alone here with no dirt on my hands.

Poetry Retreat

i’m with the sista’s
almond butter on my
tongue like glue for
the broken places
crunch of celery to
tear up the small angry
spots, take me to creation
a wild stallion ride of words
coats our bodies soothed by
the natural hot fire water springs
of Joyful Journey, at the base of
the Sangre de Cristo mountains blood
of what saves us, pouring forth from
the center of Gaia, I take deep breaths
here like dragging on a cigarette without
the cancer, clear stars almost touchable
from the the round Yurt where we sleep
when i emerge to pee, the sound of God breaks over me
moonbeams have saturated the empty
landscape and I am alone cocooned but
awake and in love with this Universe.