dawn directions

haiku

 brilliant pink-orange east

dawn reclaiming from gray mists

moving sunrise north

headlong into hellfire

gentle souls conquer without winning

testing further their compassion

toward their tormentors

deepening their humbleness

but heaping coals of fire on the heads

of those diving into the hellfire

of bitter littleness and loss

when the sun don’t shine

perspective deepened for many people

during the moon’s journey

between earth and sun

daytime darkness obliged us to think

above the busy-ness of our lives

to our relationship with the planet-

and star-sized scales of our solar system

and perhaps beyond to our Sol’s

place in our galaxy and universe

such perspective is not humiliating

but properly humbling, giving rise

to thoughts of what matters enough

to consider important

in our brief lives

April 8, 2024

eeriness of a sudden chill

birds fluttering, darting to nests

bats lifting from inverted sleep

giraffes shifting to shelter their young

horses meandering, sure only in line

with others, also restless and uncertain

dogs whimpering, cowering

or crawling to be near awed masters

standing, arms raised, intent upon

the midnight sky barely past noon

with blotted sun exposing only odd

ring of blue- or gold-white coronet

lasting minutes between diamond

and diamond

rare, beautiful, strange

gift for a lifetime shared with so many

experiencing as never before

their common, frail humanity

acknowledging the vastness of reality

b-t-c claims credit for the eclipse

modestly publicly assuming

that his latest fundraising triumph

is cause for today’s shadow play

of how he will overwhelm his opponent

Bluffo the clown omitted mention

of how it will also shade out

courtroom battles and his use

of campaign funds to pay his legal fees

but many smaller would-be-donors

already know that to be fact

                                         —poor Bluffo

sounds of water

waves sweeping in for a bow

with quiet grace or flourish

shawl or cape whipped white

as raindrops splat on metal roof

or plummet onto furrowed earth

and trickle into gurgling rivulets

streaming toward roaring, gnashing

rivers to the sea to full circle

as pounding waves or lifted

by evaporation to cling to tiny particles

and fall again as rain

each role and costume enhanced

by sound that reach our souls

b-t-c in his own b movie

 blustering foul words

lambasting all around him

blaming anyone but self

bewailed by those who wish him to fall

bravo-ed by those who use him

as bait to bamboozle opponents

who believe that in bewailing the clown

they are bombarding the agenda

                                               —poor Bluffo

b-t-c burrowing in consequences

you can pity a little boy

in the slings and throws

of a snit turned tantrum

you can pity a bloated clown

writhing under the weight

of his own antics

but unless you are helping him

grow into manhood, you had better

make sure he is somewhere

where he can do no harm

—poor Bluffo

b-t-c up in the air

you’d think the circus

would be afraid to have an airport

named for the clown who owns

the title of leader of the most

failed businesses

but Bluffo the clown’s nomenclature

is proposed as the new name for a busy

prosperous international facility

Bluffo has crashed so many times

how can we hope for a ‘soft landing’?

our b-t-c does not even merit

having a field named after him

—poor Bluffo

dreamed mountains of color and time

dreams in the night of mountains

snaggle-toothed and gray with

the mixing of complementary colors

eerie of purple muted in yellow

blue warmed by sunshine orange

earthy with flora and fauna

green and red, tinted by generations

of life and reprocessing of minerals

upheavals from depths and layers

of existences over eons

mountains explaining time

as we seldom pause to comprehend

except in dreams where busy-ness

at times distorts back toward reality

b-t-c in face paint

most clowns seem to prefer white

face paint, but not Bluffo-the-clown

though he doe prefer white faces

in practice as well as philosophy

as it used to was in the good old days

still, if he weren’t colorblind

perhaps he’d realize how

his red nose and tie

clash his orange cheeks

—poor Bluffo

b-t-c on April 1st

Bluffo the clown has this day

but he’s more than an April fool

attacking the daughter of the judge actively presiding over the case

where he’s accused of criminal behavior

although attack has always been

both offense and defense for him

perhaps not understanding that others

have power to attack as well

if that judge is constrained by duty

to neutrality, not everyone else may be

                                       —poor Bluffo

b-t-c nose scarlet

Bluffo the clown, nose scarlet

bloated, threatening to burst

with the frustration of failure

to silence multiple sources

of accusation demanding accountability

incredulous that his outrageous

impropriety yields not stuttering

agreement as it has always done

but reasonable further leverage

against him, calling it justice

no clown is above the law

—poor Bluffo

Friday

Friday

service in Spanish and English

with translations for each culture

to follow as the other is spoken

warmth of caring, joining in each verse

of “Were You There” between familiar

quotations so often heard by rote

darkening of the church as we left

in silence, quieted to being able

to let in the power of experiencing

       Hillsboro United Methodist

birds in the osprey nest

two appeared one time

but we don’t see them again

we’re hoping they were visitors

enroute to somewhere else

for our perennial pair it would be

a bit cold and chill rainy yet

to start the ritual of months

of sitting on eggs and flying off

to gather food for insatiable

wide mouths and growing flight feathers and the terror of first leap

in hopes that awkward, untested wings will sustain the next generation

and set weary parents free

until the next spring

self-blame

men who love at times feel crushed

by ‘failure’ to protect beloveds

from terrifying health issues

they cannot control

problems breathing, chest pain

sudden loss of vision

blinding headaches

“Oh, there’s nothing wrong with you”

is more a wish than condemnation

however unfeeling it may seem

denial is their unconscious dealing

with their own aching disquiet rather

than admit that the one they adore

needs their comfort and assurance

b-t-c in court

entangled in disputes with judges

bluffo-the-clown’s nose pinkens

into cherry, then scarlet, and now

purpling toward magenta

both walls of the narrowing trap

chuckle, one to watch his antics

with relief as he draws attention

from the real magawork

the other foolishly believing

he disqualifies himself

when no one really cares

            --poor bluffo

WiGs at Dundee Wine Library

laughter, camaraderie and creativity

joyous gathering of trusted friends

to reveal ourselves in story telling

and give and take advice from animals

in unfamiliar, cozy surroundings

imagination v ‘alternative facts’

imagination opens up possibilities

to be tested against verifiable

or at least agreed upon suppositions

‘alternative facts’ encloses each person

within self by closing down

our means of communication

since what say has no basis

that conveys the same meaning

to another individual

bev

whimsical artistry

whose foundation of close observation

is filtered through beauty and compassion

loving dedication

to those who give of themselves

eagerness to help

young souls to find their best selves

warmth, impishness, gentle laughter

in delight of life

            Bev Walker, we miss you