Don’t tell it to the wind
To be blown away as vapor
Or share it with a gossiper
As fragile as a dandelion.

Don’t speak of it on the mountaintop;
Even the clouds have ears.
For fear that the Devil hears –
Don’t pray for it aloud to God.

Let the wish build up inside
Then straight-faced, release it subtly –
As your actions make it be –
Until its existence can’t be denied.

For the favor of people and greed
I will not bring shame to my namesake.
A believer's crown, they don't esteem;
For the favor of people and greed
They lie and do a hideous deed
But take heart – enjoy what's good and straight
For the favor of people and greed
Will only bring shame to your namesake.

By a gently flowing creek –
  I saw a swallowtail flutter
About my head, as though meek –
  And land softer than a feather.

He was large enough, I swear –
  To sit in all of my hand.
He did not mind that I was there
  Or that I was entranced.

Soon, a second butterfly
  Distracted him by swooping down –
His mate, I surmised.
  How fiercely they swirled around!

Then breaking up, they moored
  To sup water from the red rock
Like two tasters of one accord
  Complimenting the good stock.

Every day is a new adventure –
  A new iota, a new gnosis –
Search not by the easy standard
  But see through the eyes of genesis.

The more I learn, the more I love
  What man before me has done.
It catapults my soul aloft;
  I yearn for that higher plane.

Push back those old perimeters;
  Notch in my brain a new wrinkle.
I forge pathways never traversed
  And find my world bigger still.

Let us drink in the sunshine
From a cup of globe mallow
As do the angelic kind
Who sup alongside God’s throne.
Here’s to another springtime.
Here’s to hope for tomorrow.

Happy eyes do not need the sun
  For they, like yours, have a light of their own –
A cutting light the demons shun
  That confesses to a kind, ageless soul.

Brown upon brown, they draw me in;
  I can’t look away nor could I leave
One who burns with a burning passion –
  With an innocence I dare not displease

And when I look into your eyes –
  My loneliness is burnt to a dry ember.
I know your happiness derives
  From within and they who see remember.

Shine for others, shine for me

Love me tender, love me strong.
Love me with wine and song
On a hillside all the day long.
Love me with a joke or two
With stories of people you knew.
Love me until night releases you.
Confide in me all that you fear.
Whisper words as you draw near
Words you know I long to hear.
Death, that sting, be accursed!
Love me for what life is worth
And know that I loved you first.

Seizuring so as if escaping from fright
You awoke suddenly around midnight
Then rolled over, meeting my body halfway
By habit, drew nearer and kissed me straight away.
Your cheek, always soft, nestled against mine.
Your wandering hand came to rest upon my thigh.
In my ear, your breath came like wind rushing.
By the touch of your tepid skin, I sensed flushing.
My eyes perused you in the moonlight
Convincing me for a moment that all was right.
You fell again to sleep peacefully it seemed

You want to requite my love;
  You already have with a ring
And many years of life
  So this I command you to bring:

A bouquet of chocolate flowers –
  Each with a nice, dark button
Comparable to your eyes –
  And a fragrance as divine.

Put it together with care –
  Tape it inconspicuously –
Present it when I’m caught unawares
  And you have hours to give me.

Such a bouquet – bright and simple –
  As native as the mourning dove –
Would be a challenge worthwhile
  Your time and your love.

Flowers in the desert
Vibrantly grow forth
In yellows and purples
Despite the salty Earth

And when I think about
How birds can fly at all
I am reminded that
Anything is possible.