The Gardener
Santa Clara, CA 95051
theroot_
GRIFFINS©
IDENTITY
and so the day was not heavenly blue
not a morning glory twined round some pump handle
and neither was it ruled by an invisible hand
all ancient glories cloaked in barest mirage
just here at the work bench
whittling adjectives in my desultory manner
smoothing with a long plane phrase
I am a shade tree metaphysician
coiling bits of wire
fashioning
beads on a string
one after another at a time when the sun shines
on memories that have become transparent tsetse flies
one or two of you know this
there is no burden to bear
no debt
no cross
pregnant rivers and city ovens put the lie
to sidewalk cafes
on my belt another notch appears, but not into dimness
willows by the river weep for me?
or with the wisdom of moss hanging in oaks
and those people we knew at the 5 Spot Drive In
shaded in oak trees before they were felled
for the village of profit
commercial violence disguised in Styrofoam Whimsies
for Christmas
oh, it was all somewhere else
or perhaps further than Oakland
or the climate fires in Seattle
well anyhow, long ago
not our responsibility
no one wants war
we say everyone wants profit
and the difference?
my day ignores what people say
I don't wear a suit
my jeans are faded comfortably
and as previously alluded, my waistline
is shrinking
blood pressure dropping
and the patch on the radiator of my truck
seems to be working
all you politicians keep on promising
go on and on
you don't want my kind of day
I don't want yours
yeast is rising
cinnamon rolls, everyone
islands disappearing
just a word carpenter
whose words are disappearing right beneath our feet
land fill liquefying in the next quake
pay no attention
it will be over soon
I greet the day
laughable this I, and in fact
by just a bit of chipping and sanding
I am you
SCHTICK
imagine a TCM silent movie, piano too
old fashioned
with subtitles in Sanskrit
villain bares vampire fangs
shots are heard through the back porch door
wafted on a gentle breeze, bringing leaves
in their language
familiar as a forgotten dream
images flicker
there is an Amber Alert, the abducted child appears
a knock at the front door
and a young black guy with a clipboard
it might be politically incorrect to ignore him
but so what?
the distant shots are no longer heard
who sets these rules that might be broken like a ruler
over the palm of my hand
if I disobey?
there are theatres and cell phones and bare legs
walking cute dogs
my truck is parked and says nothing
cool morning air after the legs have filtered on
without warning a swoop of wings
loud greeting of the crow who seems to hang out here
and another make a pair on the lamp post over head
we have a conversation in subtitles
it would be politically correct to listen
to the President's speech
but there is just so much time on this earth
George Bush eats broccoli; a favorable sign
so do I
real politic
withal, the me that laughs at I
finds me laughable, too
and you?
oh, please do not ruffle
we are not immortal, nor our leaders
cherished or not
so the scales of justice are weighted in their own favor
where is the balance of truth on an infinite scale?
Presidents, leaders, elected judges, crows, cute legs
all weigh equally
I do enjoy this laughter
don't you?
TREASURE
IT'S ALL PRETTY PLAIN
when it rains, it rains
sometimes drought without a doubt
dust bowls, a turtle by the road
Hey! let's make a song
civilization show me your face
so much sent to the sewerage treatment plant
and the treatment plant?
ask the workers there
because here we all are, living lives that . . .
what?
ours is not to question why
OK, take it at face value
civilization is a lottery ticket
one dollar at 7-11
bet you lose
whether or not you snooze
Hey! play it again
down to the mosque, the synagogue, The Church in Santa Clara
right next to The Pumpkin Patch at Halloween
are we having fun yet?
I certainly am
didn't go there, don't do that, no question about when
no trinity to sing
no allegiance to pledge
no gratitude or debt to . . .
oh, can't remember
write it off, festival goers
accountants, lawyers and people with guns
fire at will
without question
the dust of ventures will not settle
before it all begins again
green gargoyles on ancient buildings
migrations carrying plague
and all the treasure of . . .
let there be no doubt
there is gold
buried at Fort Knox
artifacts and literature in libraries
and scholars . . .
it all hardly glimmers before my day begins
all you cosmologists . . .
there is so much to remember and forget
a voluntary vine is growing on our front porch
it has such pretty yellow flowers
as the fruit forms . . .
FAME
these words are immortal, no doubt
they will join in the record of infamy
with those written and digitally transmitted
and now preserved in perpetuity
SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
will find it
mined from recursive records
in a universe that folds back upon itself
along with Moore's law
and ever cheaper storage
the Patriot Act
all blending into a certain assurance
Future Fiction Authors will admire this
while probably not sharing my biological imperatives
my syntax is beyond celestial comprehension
dental records will be available for scholarly collaboration
please note my absence on Facebook
I have to say my destined fame is satisfactory
and of course this I
so brazenly proclaimed
is you
check it out
send an email
it's all out there
or in here
take it to the cloud, to future galaxies
OIL AND VINEGAR
how could my big toe or your hair do
not be indebted somehow?
mother's milk, Mohawks, Pantene, whatever
next slide, please
and here we see Connecticut
in days before that great mover and shaker
Ethan Allen
logged a heritage of freedom
from the masts of British ships
a long history
but taking out the middle terms:
I, you, we were born
therefore we owe
we "own" cars, houses, educations
which calibrate the degree of our slavery
because we must pay
with interest
or have a stay at the penitentiary
we "own" our bodies
subject to disease and putative cures
which will confiscate anything that survives
bankruptcy because . . .
what?
people with guns, tear gas and tasers
enforce it
everyone knows this
everyone knows the climate is changing
tremble or fume
take your pick
makes no difference
it's changing
you limousines and leaders it's much worse
than any revolution that may have ruffled
your salad
this morning I turned the compost
Rosie went there to sit right on the edge
waiting
and she was not pleased when I told her
that the compost bird is family
but that bird can fly
when it all comes down
and cultivated plants revert to seed
they start over, and has anyone seen an apple bow to a pear?
bees, though
they're slaves, right?
workers, queen, hive
termites
thunder clouds
not fair!
to conflate all this into a sentence
it is not very reasonable
enjoy your salad
TENURE
nightly the walls of bedrooms and bathrooms disappear
a new cast of characters takes the stage
speaking in tongues that defy logic and reason
for about one third the life of anyone
normal people
if reminded
are rather more interested in a savory spectacle
for reasons of the Enlightenment
a supposed equality and the rights of all humans
are assigned
by minds claiming freedom from magical thinking
an owl with unblinking eyes
fill the scrapbook with clippings
digital photos
a documentary flashed through fiberglass cables
at the speed of instant disintegration
all fill the stage with a vanishing assumption
of inalienable rights:
life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness
discovered by rational thinkers who noticed desires
common to all people
thus self-evident and the basis
for a new nation dedicated to inarguable
but fragile truths
that only really applied to the framers
of those self-evident truths
the new nation and its founders were served by slaves
the inalienable rights were actually disposable depending
upon a declaration of national emergency
or perhaps the assignation of a political opponent
ideas rationally born can be rationally terminated
and worst of all
slavery persists
so forgive my lack of dedication to a Truth supposed immortal
by reasonable men
what we are
the actual reason of human appreciation
cannot be rationalized away
TRAVEL ADVISORY
STIFLING HEAT CAUSES DEATH IN CHINA & CHICAGO
record rainfall flooding Missouri
tornadoes, tennis ball hail
drought in the desiccated western states
buy an electric car
the President will address the nation
about something, maybe terrorists, evacuation of embassies
yes, something must be done
and of course it has been
recycle plastic
go for a bike ride
things are so much better
experts worry for us
lots of them are ignored, of course
but which of them actually know
better believe the Budweiser frogs
or read this on my website
not much
the content is not coded
plainly opening to uncoded minds
in this place the sun rises and sets as elsewhere
birds sing, frogs croak, the TV blabbles
the volunteer vine growing on the porch rail
is perhaps a watermelon
oh summertime, and the livin' is easy
except it's about 15 degrees below normal here
and I'm a reasonable person
what if it manages to reach normal size
and falls off the rail
disaster!
obey evacuation orders
but we have a solar water heater
who will tend to it if there's rain like in Missouri?
the commander of my dreams seems to be on another channel
I am reminded of things never before experienced
which naturally brings up the question of dimensions
when the moon is full are there astrological tides?
are super-colliders vulnerable to gamma rays?
old silent movies are treasures
they come with forgotten music
it all gradually fades
the sea walls of daily life
are insufficient for the next tsunami
insignificant
as I cut a fuchsia bloom
to put in my room
sitting quietly
write "subscribe" or "unsubscribe" in the subject line of an email to: theroot_us@yahoo.com
The Gardener
Santa Clara, CA 95051
theroot_