the ocean always dreamed blue dreams

her sleek
and her white teddy shimmering
even under the dim scrutiny of the naked bulb

as she vainly flees the madman
turning on lights in a darkened room,
only to find, not an exit,
but a body,
limbs askew
as if thrown there by a particularly
petulant child,
or an employee at a Halloween haunted house

enjoying the idea of the creative fear
he is about to engender in someone,
humming to himself ...

I wrote this to model some vocabulary words for my students. The caterpillar described here is the peacock caterpillar, which I believe is native to England. It is very ugly, but turns into the most glorious butterfly.

The Caterpillar and the Nun

They both wore black and white
and had an aversion to the sun
When, with great altruism,
She, the one with hands,
picked up the stinging nettle,
let it rest in the palm of her hand
...

This is for my friends, Prince and Andrea, and for someone else I love very much.

Caliban's Heart

On the day that you pushed me
into harm's way,
did you think that
love would save you then?

Watching your eyes,
so clear now
I can see forty feet straight down,
but then you come,
into our house,
into our home,
and the veil lowers,
like that of an animal dying;
Will my love help ...

My Mother and I loved each other, but our relationship was fraught. I was Bambi and she a grizzly bear, polar opposite personalities. But we made it work. She came to understand my need to be myself, and I acknowledged her deep and abiding love for her children, even while she swiped at us with her mighty paw. They were never literal blows or mortal (though when I was a teen-ager I sometimes thought they were). I guess you could say that I grew up and so did she.

As a last and fitting ...

I went to visit my mom the last week of July. When I got there, it was apparent she had lost ground and I was worried abut her being alone. My oldest son had been staying with her. I knew the time had come for my sister and I to talk to her about having some help.

When I first got there, Mom was able to get up by herself, but by the middle of the week she needed help. She was surprisingly agreeable to the idea of home health aides, and we interviewed one company while I was there. ...