earth note 101

silt trail levee
delaware & susquehanna bowels
another coincidental
hundred-year flood
the piper gets paid
in unsecured
treasury notes

--- e b bortz

corporate personhood

ultimate oxymoron
contradiction epoch
bed of a theocrat
wedding rapture
flesh talkin armageddon

--- e b bortz

(published in split w*sky, December 2006)

earth note 100

marshall trail, pittsburgh

a good number of these stones
have been turned over
a thousand times

there's no record of this
beginnings often go unnoticed
but they look too smooth
to have gone untouched

a storm early this year
put a few hefty branches across the trail
my dog negotiates the path
of least resistance
obediently
i follow

the tent caterpillars have moved on
hemlock beech maple oak
have reclaimed the canopy
the monoculture forests up north
not so lucky
you know the lesson
of monocultures
but it doesn't hurt to repeat it

a few politicians wake up
to the new reality
but they're still debating
whether it will be
fire or ice
next time

our hands link back
to the stories & stones
that go unnoticed

--- e b bortz

(published in split w*sky, December 2006)

earth note 99

who can say which side
of the fine line
you're on
keeping low expectations
or being a cynic
reluctant tulips
sometimes cautiously open
on a dark day
is this a vote of confidence
or are they just covering their ass?

on flag day
can we wrap our wounds
with old glory
without fear
or should we be using
hoods & duct tape?

a guidance counselor
shuffles the deck
another dozen
head for boot camp

a few petals drop
the rest twist
a gray cloak hangs on the maples
across the road
in what should be
their deep green season

inhale
exhale
my cat makes it across the avenue again
tell yourself
you're not a cynic

--- e b bortz