poem : dolorosa

dolorosa

Remember the upright bass and piano
in the cavern of a restaurant
under the Dolorosa Street bridge?

I keep placing myself back in your arms,
let your mind pour over my body.

We try bonding differently now:
no longer roses in your coat
but tree branches, full with spring blossoms.
The crickets are up all night, making it hard to resist their calls.

The story ends when I open the door
rather, find another reason to open that door.
My hair in its tight bun
easily undone
by your hands –

those hands, the last on that list of things I refuse.

poem : notion

notion


already the house is growing
barely visible is the trail of dirt,
grass tufts patching the spaces

used to be cement stones in the back yard,
a spine trailing from my house to the one behind,
but that space is now a cutaway of itself

we have enough hints around us to see the change
namely that the dog no longer avoids the path of blocks
in his rambunctious trot

could guess the trail no longer serves as meditation
but removing the blocks does little
when the every square in that walkway
is a memory carried in the body

poem : footnote to the romantic life

footnote to the romantic life

the unexpected glance [definition] :
1. a wind that hasn’t yet arrived, even if an ocean smell sits on your face
2. green water currents rushing against the walls of the eyes
3. two pairs of hands on a drum, when all the world decides to go quiet

see also, now you’ve ask for it and my hem’s come undone.

poem : survey

survey

looking down from a window on the plane,
the rockies like a birthmark along the land

within that line of upheaval
I find the outline of your torso
back arching, belly full and gentle,
fleshy nipples
waiting
on top of the snow-covered
curves of mt. gregorio
and felt you
so far away from me

poem : walter mercado

walter mercado

tells it like it is
except when mercury is in retrograde
the other half of the year his words are solid

white robes, polished nails and makeup,
walter mercado is the liberace of astrology
in latino america

and today he tells me
my heart has made a new path

walter mercado says there are new archways
walk through, girl

poem : horoscopes

horoscopes

your horoscope said love continues to intensify
while mine said a new love is placed in your heart, calming you.
who knew free weeklies could offer such divination?

but next time we shouldn’t read them at the beginning of a meal
it just makes the rest of our conversation together
bitter

poem : imprint

imprint

less of me remembers the way you like your coffee
or feels your mood from miles away
you occupy my time in smaller doses,
your voice no longer distinct from a distance

my body changing its frequency
to align with someone new
how the radio gives off static each time I pass

poem : the pragmatist

the pragmatist

I changed my name, the way I signed it
and the way my hair rested on my shoulders
long before I left town

I wanted to arrive
ready