Tag Archives: vermont

Temperance

Nostrils carved of ice,
the breath slicing through tender lungs,
attacking the warm muscle.

My calves caught
in the maw of my jeans,
like a dogs rubber toy,
no wrenching
or twisting
able to free it;
two layers deep,
in a sandwich of warmth –
hastily readied for the journey,
a school far away at its end.

So I ran.
Slammed the door behind me,
landing on the snow,
not in.

Everything an autumn leaf isn’t,
but landing as they all the same.
I ran, holding my weight like a skirt,
caught in a room of carnivorous formality,
and the snow permitted me upon it.
Having had two days of blistering cold,
beneath bright clear skies.
It was kind and unforgiving.

That threat – I knew.
I ran, and thankfully
never broke through,
I was untouchable.

The Maples of Vermont

A spike and hammer,
a bucket
unevenly distributed.
The sun means nothing but light,
A bright pylon amongst the clouds,
but its back is turned all the same;
giving its warmth to anyone else.

The freeze isn’t gone,
merely hiding amongst the shadows.

One tree,
prouder than the others, brighter;
stands tall-
an ambassador to the sky,
speaking for the earth of its roots,
or so it seems. Its arms fanned out
in a skeletal embrace.

The leaves are gone,
but the essence inside thrives.

The metal placed against the bark
causes no response,
not that anything is left to shake free.
What is needed is underneath,
a few blows away,
and then-
                  it slowly seeps,
unable to contain itself.

Later we burn most of it away,
so all that is left of that bitterness
is sweet.

Lake Champlain in Autumn

Sky over sky-
the heavens reflected;
mercurial madness
overcomes the water
in a fit of serenity
                      for who knows how long now.
                Hours are indiscernible from minutes,
                from time
                from deeply held passions.
Where the two suns meet-
there is fire.

On the Banks of the White River

There

          on the riverfront
      at the end of my finger

                                          know that darkness
                              [coquettish laughter]

Who would find humor there?

                               [laughter unending]
      where the solemn mind will oft grovel
              and surrender
                    falling upon their own sharpness
        to let the water carry them in repose
                                  out to the ends of the earth;
                                        down to the depths of the oblivion.

                                [exaltation]

There can be no champions here,
                  no joy in the present.
There can be only reflection
                                remembrance
        the smelting of one’s mettle
                to steel itself against the coming dawn.

                                [silence]

Contentment is the cancer that killed the world
            laughing as it rages past
                    against the rocks
                                frothing at the mouth.

An Indeterminate Number of Trees and Rocks Behind the House

If I die in this place
                        who will find me?

Like a piton
this thought, is stuck in my mind

My sneakers were made for lazy days
for sidewalks and classrooms
they fold over rocks like jerky
       slipping
                  more often than
                             catching.

They are quick to remind me
I don’t belong
                                                 here.

but the height makes me quicker still
               all the while still wondering…

If I die in this place
                         who will find me?

Scaling the cliffside
I look for rebellious roots
terrified brittle limbs
confident rocks
eager to help a hand
miles away
                                                                  my home is empty
the sun is setting
                       and my mind echoes…

If I die in this place

                           Who will find me?