PATRIOT ACT
There are thousands now
coming back from Iraq
one legged and deaf and blind
dragging the dead they left behind
Yet they speak so well
of those who sent them to that hell
That they are true patriots may be a fact
and this is how true patriots act
Or could article thirty four be the reason
where one critical word and your pension is
gone plus five years in the brig for treason
2 CATS, 2 DOGS AND A 5 YEAR OLD
The orange cat has orange eyes
Orion lost two teeth
dogs bark at every care
but Alura scared off the bear
In the dream
I look up from my desk
into the smile on the madman’s face
in that long eternal moment
before he wrecks the plane
In the dream
I am old and frail on a mis stepped step and
I am the young and strong who catch my eye
as pushed and pushing they pass me by
and will live with it till they wake or die
In the dream
I am the man in uniform
climbing endless stairs against a human sea
only to find them endlessly
folding in on me
In the dream
I am the woman in the chair
that two men carried down the stair
gripping the wheels as I hear them say
the lady is still standing in the bay
CABBIES OF ATHENS
Chaos pounds over dead civilizations
horns blare battle cries, fists shake the air
Taxi driver warriors slash and stab
and play pirate with the meter
And woe befall the coward fare
who doubts their courage and their skill
by any attempt to buckle up that belt
PELICAN PROJECT SALUTE
You are the pelican warriors
You are the pelicans who do not run away
you are the pelicans that stay and fight
you are the pelicans that defend your nests
you are the pelicans that defend your tribe
You are the pelicans
who fly from your homes to find a new lake
You are the pelicans
brave enough to fly near people
(it can be dangerous to fly near people)
You are the pelicans
brave enough to fly through your fears
You are the pelicans
who know some people are your friends
who know some people need your gifts
You are the pelicans
who teach pelicans and people
how to care for their young
how to live for their tribe
How to fly and dance and swim
and fish together again
I dip my ink tipped wing
in praise of you
BIG BOYS
The deep sadness
The red anger space
The hang on tight we
may end up in the next county passion
All hidden behind the great wall of control
That terrible land where I locked
the little boy who could cry
And if I open the door to one of these
will they come bursting out
And with what years
of build up force behind them
I know big boys don’t cry
I don’t remember why
Would they die
SHAMAN’S HEART
Two centuries back I look down at legs
covered with buckskin white as whitest sand
In the valley below are the tepees
I go home my wife rises to greet me
I speak her name
like water laughing over small stones
Feel full and more with a love for her
as warm as the sumer dawn
strong as my manhood rising
I am a chief and the son of a chief
not brave enough to deny
the life of a brave
Though Shaman at heart
not Shaman enough to break
the heart or the will of my father
I hang by my flesh at a sundance
and lead the young men to war
Say goodbye to my wife and babe in her arms
ride off to the folly of a raid with no cause
As spirit rises from body
my enemies honour my courage
cut my heart from my chest and eat it
Neither friend – nor foe – nor father know
it is not the heart of a brave
ICARUS UNBOUND
Within the greater urge
of man to soar and fly
It is not uncommon
that some may try and die
Salmon must return to spawn
birds must south and northward fly
The Buddha and the Christ
give focus to the martyr’s eye
The fault lies not
in these unalterable things
But in the material
with which he built the wings
DRAGONS
Beyond the maps of the ancient world
“There, be dragons”
Beyond the ways of parents and of peers
“There, be dragons”
Beyond the days of preachers and
of teachers
“There, be dragons”
Beyond where you know or
have dared to go
“There, be dragons”
A toe tip, a step, and a stride
Heart, arm and sword,
steeled by the fiery breath
How sweet the dragon’s meat,
and the maiden’s
Another mark on another map
“Here, be dead dragons”
ON THE WIRE
When you are dancing on the wire
not looking down, is the net.