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Collected Poetry
(rd king dot net)poetry and digital art
The Big Picture
Groups of short poems.
Acquiescing to Signs
1: Water Many kinglets in the branches of the little silk tree. A sprinkler on the lawn beneath: water— my cat watches the kinglets. I watch the kinglets watching my little cat. 2: Water in Motion We walked out on the bridge to look down at the river. Over the rail we leaned to see the water flow. 3: Signs The yellow-blossomed sprays from the rangy forsythia fanned through the white picket fence—ardent incipience, where I drove down an unsigned street. 4: Cocktail Zen As she sat upon a velvet couch holding a glass of wine and cigarette I did not know if her spirit would live on—but I did see the way an earring played against her neck. 4: A Party The music was loud. Apt frenzy emptied the singer's voice. A lot of smoke filled the crowded room. There were people trying to dance a mostly awkward, heathen dance. 5: Down in Laguna Quietly on the old hotel roof we stood drinking tequila and watching the traffic below. Waves licked the salty beach. In loud bars, men kissed other men. 6a: Homage to Frank O'Hara Everything hardened by rock and roll, all things shaken by drugs— cheapened by the incontiguous access to the sublime—jacketed and cold, I ventured down the early street. 6b: Homage to Frank O'Hara Stumbling down an early street, jacketed and cold, not quite attentive, not quite pissed or unhappy (wishing to piss)— away from the blossoming trees and that noise gathered in the ballroom. 7: The Big Picture The morning was harsh. My daughters were crying and my wife was not happy. I tried to stop. I tried to look at the big picture— but it was too big. 8: Government Buildings There were three people walking down a bright hallway in a government building—which made the details officious, except for the purple corduroy trousers the big woman was wearing. back | ToC | next
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