Michael Jackson

Do you know who I am

Been gone for longer than I've been dead.

Left my soul on the bandstand floor

when I should have been in the school yard.

I grew bigger than my shadow

until I fell inside it

looking for the monkeys

and the Peter Pans in Neverland

employing Tinkerbells

to make the weight get lighter

to make the black get whiter...

Do you know who I am

The boy-man on the radio

on the tv in the day-glo

you read about it

what I said about it

though as I recall I never really spoke at all

I only called out

Do you know me now?

I went out to dinner by myself tonight and as I waited for my food I wrote this down on a napkin. I had been thinking about Michael Jackson dying (I heard it on npr while I was working on a project). After I finished and my food came and I started eating, I began to think about the fact that Michael Jackson also molested young boys. And the first obituary shrank down into a single sentence. 

Another child molester gone, good riddance. 

When I came home I went onto facebook and there was post after post mourning the musical legend and not a word about the children. So I posted a question; does everybody not remember that musical genius aside, Michael Jackson was a pedifile?

Within seconds I was told by someone I went to high school with that if I didn't have anything nice to say I should say nothing at all. And then very quickly other friends "liked" her stance. Then I got a response from a friend who said she had met M.J. when he was a child and was being berated by his father and that we are cruel to those with talent in this society and that it wasn't his fault and that we should just try to be more loving.

I apologized for offending and explained that while I'm a big fan of Michael Jackson's music I'm also an advocate for children. All children and that along with the joy his music brought, the child abuse is as relevant in his obituary...

All this got me thinking about a lot of things.  How we tend to forgive/forget certain things from certain people. How if it were you or your child you might feel differently. How I felt attacked in the bizarro forum of facebook and got defensive and wanted to be understood. How maybe it is okay to feel attacked for saying something I believe. How emotional the masses can feel for someone no one really knows. How a persons art/music can have such an effect on so many people and how powerful that is....

In any case, all of our feelings on the matter are real and true.

Michael Jackson was a great contributer and will be remembered as a true legend in the music world and he molested young boys.

a day off

sometimes boredom

can come like a prize

the blank page

or the unexpected nothing of a day...

i knew a man who once said

he was tired

no, exhausted just from thinking all day

and as i pulled off my work clothes

and slipped into sweat pants and

a tee shirt

i was momentarily resentful

then i realized, the real work is the concept

                                  and the rest is easy!

so when i have nothing 

but the day before me

first i celebrate the beauty of nothing

and then

get to work!

yes. yum.

A thank you note

I just want to thank you

all those from afar

who I don't see nearly enough of

(or not at all)

you know who you are!

The comments and the mail you send

The contributions to the creative place in me

which is such a big thing!

& which has been largely private

& which I love to share.

You keep me thinking and making and loving. So thank you!

poppy

there's a man inside my boy and a boy inside my man

a girl inside the room, she's singing

a cherry tree outside with a cherry on a limb

not afraid to go out on a 

ride against the wind

i've seen a child in my dreams and dreamed a thousand other things

they mingle with the seedlings in the garden

a fallen peach, a silky plum, a rose unfold then come undone

i've watched the center of a poppy harden

i've licked the skin and sipped the tea

called from the boy the man in me

i've played the music while she danced

and touched the limb and grabbed the chance

there's a picture in my house and a home inside my head

a banjo and a guitar in the corner

a feather in a jar that flew in from afar

it landed in the snow that fell last winter

but i brought you here to show you, not to tell you

i brought you here to show you not to tell you

can you see the wings of the bird who must have flown

can you see the bowls in the cupboards in my home

are the orange of the peach and the purple of the plum

like the boy and the girl and the man in the song

we have it all inside us

a great, long, rhyming tune

we are a verdant garden and the rose when it's in bloom

we are the fallen petals

that rise to touch the wind

we are the dreams we have of children

and a thousand other things

there's a lady in my breast that beats inside my chest

a man who stands and watches as she changes

two trees in the back yard with a hammock in between

to rock us as the world around us rages...

click here to see incredible paper art!

Dreams of youth

Dreams of youth:

The dream of dark, warm water, the dream of cool air on your skin, the dream of blankets, the dream of climbing trees, the dream of lost teeth, the dream of the first time, the first dream, the dream of the breast, the dream of waiting for the school bus, the dream of getting the right answer, the dream of getting the wrong answer, the dream of shame, the dream of the dark night, the dream of chores, the dream of trying to please, the dream of a special occasion, the dream of the friend, the dream of losing the friend, the dream of crossing a bridge, the dream of the cave, the dream of wet shoes at lunchtime, the dream of being read to, the dream of  lost toys, the dream of summer vacation, the dream of the moon, the dream of keys, the dream of singing loud, the dream of the banjo, the dream of laughter, the dream of longing, the dream of fire, the dream of the longest day, the dream of siblings, the dream of rebellion, the dream of consequences, the dream of the belt, the dream of the record player, the dream of the piggy bank, the dream of being lost but not caring, the dream of being afraid, the dream of flying, the dream of amusement, the dream of listening to grown up conversations, the dream of the hula-hoop, the dream of anger, the dream of love, the dream of safety, the dream of the wood stove, the dream of snakes in the wood pile, the dream of the rocking chair, the dream of the back yard, the dream of growing up, the dream of art, the dream of art, the dream of art, the dream of art....., the dream of creating the first thing, the dream of discovery, the dream of suffocating, the dream of your dog, the dream of the dog you don't have, the dream of owls, the dream of peeing in the bed, the dream of silence, the dream of the birthday party, the dream of the missing piece, the dream of a circle, the dream of rocks, the dream of your hometown, the dream you always dream, the dream you never dream, the dream of Halloween candy, the dream of learning to read, the dream of reading, the dream of writing, the dream of art, the dream of art, the dream of being understood, the dream of not being understood, the dream of sleeping.....

A few from new very small book series

Here are a few new very small books which is my new project...  If you'd like to be included, please send a very small bio. What's your story in 8-24 words? Also, I'm working on a very small book of Zen come-ons so if you have any, please send them along...

Also, very short dreams and any very small big ideas.....

morning time love notes

                                I'm a very groggy morning person. It takes me a long time to wake up. But something lovely happens in my home most mornings as Jono is a really great morning man.  When I wake up I stumble down the stairs, all sleep drenched and wobbily. Jono has typically been up for awhile. A whole days work behind him by 8:30 am. And so there's life going on to greet me & COFFEE too! Sometimes Jono's already gone to the gym and on those days, I get a note directing me towards fresh coffee or a cup already poured into a thermos cup to keep it warm. Occasionally I get heart art along with  my coffee which makes me very, very happy! Here are a few examples... Cherries, sweet tarts and popcorn with raisenette exclamation point.

What do these words have in common?

banana, dresser, grammar, potato, revive, uneven , assess

*Take the first letter, place it at the end of the word & then spell the word backwards. It will be the same word.

* PS- click on photo! It's worth it!

i'm back in my skin

in my body again

all light

resilience

silence

conquered one more 

overwhelming

mystery