lotus

her calling card presence belies
an aura of a certain dignity,
a riddle that
leads with its answer
so clearly that you miss
that it is in plain sight

she carries a duality
in her deep green
or are they hazel
5000-piece puzzle eyes

indifference to pain
that she might cradle
those who suffer

cause and effect
carved her
slowly and perfectly
like a river gently cuts
the walls of a canyon
unwrapping a life
of color and light

she cannot help but
make music, with her hands
or by the way her
body cuts through the air.
she is a song,
a six syllable waltz
with the most perfect
Japanese lyric

indifference to pain
that has defined her
celebration of discovery

© Tom Watters  1/26/07

yield

containment is for
the criminal element or
forest fires

emotions get corsets
love gets a push-up bra

restraint,
more of a
shut-the-fuck-up,
these groceries can not
be boxed
neatly

they are fragile
walk on eggshell
snowshoes
ever delicate
concealing the Byzantine
embroidered on tattered sleeves

they are held by their
lovely leashes
skills atrophied
smiles pasted in place

they
never wanted to grow
never wanted incisors
pastel on their walls suited them

now look at them
tarted up in a teenager’s
amateur bonne bell
welled up inside of me
a fire-starter

© Tom Watters  1/25/07

cinema

no clocks or calendars
in this bed… there
is an obtuse waiting

period.

sleep twines within
pillows that seem
to multiply like shopping malls

in formation.

crawl by digital
apparatus farms
that indifferently wait

this is their job.

news reel dreams
reporting a mantis
nouveaux  bed-bug chic

preying.

wood and wires
sing softly as
they shift on sheets

high-strung.

sweat and hearts
swallow the hours…
call the traffic on

surviving the mirror.

© Tom Watters  1/11/07

superman

kites fly
and there is little
volunteerism
in this small soup kitchen
on lois lane
and apathy

sorted and sordid
my steam has
been misdirected,
passion melted
out of shape like
Dali’s Timex

I reach for
the ripcord one
yes, one more time
flushing out the
safety net I know
like my own smile

the other cheek
sings a familiar Byrds song
ever the season
a tired, sly wink is
issued… too tired for tears
hope is rote

© Tom Watters  1/10/07