Moon in the Light

moon in the light.
moon in the light,
your very bright,
and sometimes not
in sight at all.
moon in the light.

- to Leslie Merriman from her little brother Sean (age 11?)


mount hood
not alaska by any stretch,
but the closest i can compare.
our camp squeezed into the narrow way
between two inclines,
one leading up,
one leading down,
each at the angle of repose.

cold,
dreaming,
now and again,
of sand dragons.

3:15,
3:30,
3:45,
4:00,
ante meridiem,
and a moon the size of
my open mouth.
fumbling through buttons and dials,
everything in monochrome,
but the picture.

the short days
and the long nights
were not so different,
then,
except in my mind.

The Evening

i look to the evening,
hopeful,
knowing i will find nothing there,
but hopeful none the less.

i look to Neruda for words
and find them,
but every word is ancient
and i sink deeper
and my mouth narrows
and my brow narrows

and i know there will be no peace
until the words come ...

... if the words come.