earth note 298

a full-blown sun
is running out the bottom
of a leaky bucket
so intense it'll be empty
before you know it

i need to find a way

to hide my impatience
with whatever comes next

there's nothing in spectator sports

to save
cept maybe the tailgates

so let me ride this

like a segue
outta the cities
toward the barrier islands
just this side
of the mangroves

--- e b bortz

earth note 297

i'm still searching
the riverbanks
for a clue
about where this all
might be going

the waves come home

and then collapse
like an unfinished motion

the leaves get airborne

and then drop listlessly
to the water

i don't put much stock

in so-called intelligent life
after all it's got us
to where we're at

so i'll keep the moneychangers
out of this one

a crow is still a caw

if we're listening

don't conclude

this is a forfeiture

if you're still looking

--- e b bortz

earth note 296

the peaks from
the houses
are positioned perfectly
with the sun
     they print angles
     onto the avenue
     in black & white
with an overlay of the yellow lines
     suppressing all caution
green maple leaves
begin their ascension
to red & brown

--- e b bortz

 

movin on...no roadkill

the backpack was too big
for the bus overhead
so it went into
the luggage carrier
underneath
and as he slipped into
one of the seats
his book "planet walker"
opened up
     a lot of terrain to cover
     no doubt
and only one lifetime
to do it
so catching the bus
as far as nashville
was something of a shortcut
still leaving enough road ahead
for you to still earn
your
planet
stripes
     (sorry for the phony hierarchical phrasing)
but i wanted to break it down
for (who or whom?) ever
is keeping
the log

--- e b bortz

high techies

say that plastic is better
but it still looks like
cold steel
wrapped by american flag
incorporated

every shot rings thru the valley

brings the street closer
to the surface
of a pockmarked teenager
looking for kicks & liquor
with an abandoned streetcar track
called spring garden avenue

a ripped screen door

can still stop flies
when you're sedated

billboards proclaim

more cash for your house
and weapons
don't miss the upcoming
gun extravaganza

this is nothing like

the sharks & jets
camaraderie is so passe

the incorporates

make the speeches
drill the minds
never play
the taps

--- e b bortz

earth note 295

even as the feet move
the steps appear
to be a circular motion

it's that time

of year again
somewhat confusing

the new of september

is not an oxymoron
but a beginning

without preconceived assumptions

a hundred colors of dogma
will become a forest trail

--- e b bortz

earth note 294

marshall trail
in the middle of the northside
of pittsburgh
could have fooled me
     (because i wanted to be fooled)
into thinking i was hiking along
a ridge on the continental divide
in northern minnesota

cept for a big 6-point buck

who never saw a minnesota winter

of course the trees are different too

plush maples and oak and black cherry

won't do too well in the midst of
tamarack     white birch and a lot of wetlands

nonetheless

the earth & stones
have their own stories to tell
i'll keep listening for them
     the moss on the outcrops
     stay green all year

& when you inhale

& realize it's autumn
let the fear go
     let the meditation begin

--- e b bortz

earth note 293

99% of the world's species
go unacknowledged
voiceless

migrating is nature

to glean is to survive

usually doesn't make

good copy or gossip
or get above the noise

has no lobbyist or publicist

no bible

maybe a handful of advocates

looking at
their next grant proposal

ads bordering

national geographic
puff pieces

commercially viable
     an original sin

--- e b bortz

earth note 292

every rip tide
is a statement
an answer to the docile

even pocomoke river

& corkers creek
pay attention

if there's a way

to twist and exploit
a planet's skin

it'll be done

while the bankers
hide neath the boardwalk

--- e b bortz