The eagle watches 

unfazed by the squabbling gulls,

waiting for its time 

The firelight draws 

out a sense of comfort with

deep and ancient roots

Epistolary 

to a would-be king, to wit:

history repeats 

Even the pharaohs 

are just dust now, swirling in 

an endless cycle 

Exhalations come

condensed in the cold air and 

sweat freezes in hair 

Sometimes the only 

answer is a large stack of

pancakes and bacon 

Temerity to

terror but suddenly you

find its at your door 

Dust motes in the strong

morning light call to me to

get my ass in gear 

As Matisse lay in 

bed unwell he continued 

to make gorgeous art  

Monsters are men not

myths nor mysteries, ghastly

in their normalcy 

A crow alit on

an ice flow mid river and

headed south in style 

No content in that

character, just a yawning 

featureless chasm 

The silence lasts for

but a moment as the snow 

quietly collects 

Titles and miens throw 

shadows to distract from the

true measures inside 

Not ready to go

but the fuse has been lit; the

timer ticking down.

Cracked, chipped, and gnarled by

time, but still beautiful in 

its decrepitude 

My mind is empty 

today like the infinite 

space of a clean page 

 Confabulate life

from a half-remembered dream

or simply fake it 

Soon the parade will 

arrive with ballyhoo and 

bedlam spreading wide 

 There, the season of 

Mardi Gras has begun, but

here it's just damn cold 

Thoughts mirror the bleak

day of biting cold letting 

icy words slip out  

A leaning dog steals 

a glance hoping for something,

a treat or a pat 

An empty can rolls 

down the emptier street and

I, emptiest, watch  

A crow feather in

my hand catches the light and

goes from black to blue 

 Sapling shivers in 

the frigid wind waiting for 

spring to thaw and grow 

The river pushes 

ice against the shore grinding

it down (metaphor)

Yell at the walls in 

a one-sided exchange and 

still manage to lose

Follow through or don't

since in the end it's on you

and no one else, pal

The strong morning light

spotlights a single mourning 

dove waiting for food 

Set regrets alight 

and forget about any 

new resolutions 

Trampled confetti 

and a busted noisemaker 

tell the night's story