Two geese fly
over the lake
bringing spring
with each flap
of their wings.
Two geese fly
over the lake
bringing spring
with each flap
of their wings.
There is anticipation
in the preparation
equal to arriving
at the destination.
They mandate learning
You must be here
You must go to this website
You must explore
And they are so unprepared
their website crashes
no one can reach it
and we just shake our heads
at the irony
of the sad reality
of their expectation we rely on this technology.
I feel you curled against my back.
I stroke your warm body.
I gaze into your soft brown eyes,
that gaze lovingly back to me.
I wonder whose ashes are in the box:
Conspiracy theories.
Painful realities ring with the alarm clock,
and my contentment turns to ashes.
Floor level is less interesting
Fewer blankets and pillows are piled into corners
for you to collapse upon.
Crumbs aren’t cleaned up by a searching tongue.
No floor level greeter welcomes me home
No floor level sniffer seeks a snack of his own
Floors stay cleaner: no foot prints at the door,
no water puddles down the hall.
Sometimes I still see you from the corner of my eye
and once again, I say good-bye.
.
.
An unconventional art hanging spot, that feels just right.

The print is by Zefi Famelis of http://www.zefiart.com. It’s called “Eyes of Love.” I’ve had it for several years, but now it’s in the living room. Here’s a closer look:

The ancient Greeks formalized education.
Men should seek the seven liberal arts.
They must know grammar,
rhetoric,
dialectics.
Then move on to
music
arithmetic,
geometry,
astronomy
and always consider the tenets of philosophy.
You must begin knowing how words connect,
how to persuade others,
how to think logically and analytically,
then explore
sound,
numbers,
shapes,
and stars.
It’s a shadow
she can’t quite see,
just behind her head.
A sensation of suspicion
quickening between
her shoulder blades.
A darkness settling in
a midnight coloured cape.
Oppressive premonitions
that demand she hides, fades away.
No energy for fight or flight
when confronting the black horror
of night.