Boot Camp

Sitting on the toilet,

Nothing coming out,

Drill Instructors

Outside, lurking about,

Newly-shaved head,

Stress and fear,

Wondering how the heck

I ended up here...

マイペース

That comforting realization,

In the beginning of the end,

Around me the sweaty ones

Who compete and contend...

That when they warn

"You'll be left behind!"

I find, that I

Do not really mind...

Up Above

Crows and Seahawks,

Fly the cool sky,

Of the Equinox...

救急車

Early morning ambulance klaxons,

Taxi service for the near-dead,

Away from their lonely apartments

Carried to a distant hospital bed...

Beyond Words

Boasts, threats, promises,

Talk is cheap,

Time to act, girdle up

Your faith and leap...

Rescue

Catch the life-line

Thrown your way,

Safety awaits in

A troubled day,

Not a time for

Despair or hope,

Just don't let go

Of the rope...

Out of the Enclosed

The light at the end of the tunnel,

What does it really portend?

Emergence from darkness,

A beginning, or rather, an end...

2020~2021

What was the pandemic like,

You ask,

Well, I pretty much

Always wore a mask...

Slather on alcohol,

Stay quiet and hide,

Hope the virus

Didn't find a way inside...

Immune system later

Bolstered by inoculation,

Helped put an end

To our social isolation...

Glass Half Full

The ability to

Inspire, uplift,

Spread positivity,

Is a gift...

Show Business

A Hollywood Star,

Best seen on the screen,

Or viewed from afar...

For to do otherwise,

Their flaws and warts

Will appear to your eyes...

Revealing the fact

They are only special

Because they can act...

Their everyday lives

Otherwise somewhat sane,

Boosted by pills and booze,

Cope with the mundane...

Night Shift

While most folks are soundly asleep,

We are awake and working away,

Like vampire bats we embrace the dark,

And then go to rest come the new day,

No customers to deal with, focus on

The job, fewer distractions, less stress,

We night hawks exist, unseen, unnoticed,

But make things happen, nonetheless...

Do The Dew

Mountain Dew,

A refreshing elixir,

Originally made

As a Bourbon mixer,

Now a mass market

Soft drink queen,

Delivering high fructose

Corn, citrus, caffeine...

観光地

Tourists arrive, purchase, 

Pass through,

Our country, a theme park,

A zoo...

Reversal

Everything changed in our war,

When we got to the point where

We could not back up anymore... 

Visitor

What arrived from outer space,

Wasn't a group of little green men,

Rather, buried in a meteorite,

Was a microscopic pathogen,

Which rode the rock, unnoticed,

Down into the angry ocean surge,

And now it lies among the

Whale bones, waiting to emerge...

Scut Work

Working through a mess,

Relentless stress,

But cleaning it up brings happiness...

Slow Morning

Welcome a morning, which unfolds,

Better than one which explodes,

Drift, flow, into what the day holds...

Kyiv

Be aware, forewarned,

That when you attack,

They might not run,

They might fight back...

月見

Dip brush into the ink,

Wait for it, then write,

While seated outside,

With courtiers, at night,

Inspiration under the

Harvest Moon's light...

祈る

Slow down, reflect,

Pray for better things,

Then wait and see

What the future brings...

Retail Peace

Toddlers in daycare, kids at school,

Parents out doing, giving their all,

And me enjoying the space

At the half-empty shopping mall...