THE CRY OF THE LOON
The cry of the loon
shatters the glass of the lake
V shard follows her
THE CRY OF THE LOON
The cry of the loon
shatters the glass of the lake
V shard follows her
GALVESTON ISLAND CALM
Palm trees bending to the right
two birds flying to the left
Palm trees rooted in the sand
birds break even with the wind
Nothing moving for the moment
quick now snap the picture
It will stay that way forever
A LITTLE TO THE RIGHT
How does the heron
learn about refraction
and that the fish is not
where the fish appears to be
It is a matter of survival I suppose
Like me learning the difference
and the angle of intent
between what you said and
what you meant
SOUND THINKING
If a group of crows is a murder
a group of grackles must be
a massacre
GRACKLES IN AUSTIN
Crows
that couldn’t make the choir
singing in protest
THE USELESS LAKE
At the edge of our ranch
lay a large and useless lake
True, it was pretty enough
when the sun struck it just right
And the alkali
didn’t seem to be a problem
for the seeming millions
of cormorants, gulls and pelicans
who embraced it for their home
There were even men
living along the south shore
who may have been happy
mining its salt for money
What I meant was
it was water
that the cows couldn’t drink
SPRING HOPES ETERNAL
Spring hopes eternal
The meadowlark’s song
Lifts tears from the dew
THE JOY OF THE LOON
The joy of the loon
Is in the sadness of his song
Candle lake at dawn
GALVESTON MORNING
In slow formation
lunch boxes under their bills
pelicans off to work
ANGELS IN TEXAS
If you can’t die
In a state of grace
you might just die
in the state of Texas
If you can’t
Be carried on high
by the white wings of angels
You may still
be lifted with loving care
borne up on the black wings of buzzards