November 2021
About Poemography
To commemorate the tenth anniversary of my Poem-A-Day Project, I am reprising my daily poetry challenge in 2021.
Every day this year—from January 1st until the 31st of December—I will create a new poem inspired by whatever moves me at the moment I sit down to compose that day's poem, publishing them here with subscription-free access for all.
Every Tuesday throughout the year, I will write and publish one bonus poem that will be available exclusively to my Patrons on Patreon.
In 2022, I will publish a book of my complete poems, spanning more than 40 years of poetry writing. The complete collection of poems will be published in a limited edition hardbound book available for purchase. Enjoy the year!
30NOV21
An Indelible Legacy
I accept the fact that I know
So little about you, about your
Past, your childhood, your growing
Up in that house with the three of them
I can't really imagine that was a happy
Place or a happy time in your life; I
Often wonder about what really
Happened between you and
Your mother and I'm curious
To know if in some way history
Is repeating itself as it often does;
I'm fairly certain, though, that you're
Mostly blind to how your actions and
Words will leave an indelible legacy
That will remain with your children
Throughout their lives and beyond
29NOV21
Snow and Lightning
I love the comforts of home
The warmth and security
Family and familiarity
The constants and
The variables; the
Snow and lightning
The bare branches and
The peace of mind kindled
At the sight of my children
Fast asleep in their beds;
But for every treasured
Moment of tranquility
There are times when
I can barely muster up
The slightest bit of lucidity,
Not even moved by a sparkle
28NOV21
Getting Back
It was like finding an old reel
Of unseen 8mm film in a rusty
Tool box that had been hidden
Away in the attic for fifty years
Familiar faces I've known all my
Life; every song, every lyric and
All the stories of their lives and
Deaths; the intricate details of
Their existence, their prominence
And imperfections; their addictions
And afflictions, their nuances and
The very essence of who they were
And for 468 minutes I laughed and
I cried, rejoiced and reveled and
Remembered why I fell in love with
The Beatles all those years ago
27NOV21
Calm, Grey and Ordinary
There is an intense calmness
Settling into the grey, ordinary
Space of my existence; I am trying
To get used to the idea of my mortality
To the unsettling notion that every day
Brings me closer and closer to the
End; as a younger man, I would
Have never imagined making
It this far; and I spend far too
Much time pondering how old I
Will be when my children are this
Age or that, trying to live with what
Feels like an unbearable burden of
Guilt in having made the decision
To have children later in life; so I
Live with the onus of my unease
26NOV21
Death by Water
Fascinated by water
Its mystery and awe
The dangers of its
Savage essence
The beauty of its
Stillness and unease
At the imposing force
It can inflict upon the
Unwary; I often wonder
About my own fragile
Existence and how
My demise will
Come to be; I
Dream about a
River and my final
Breath, liquid and cold
25NOV21
Calliope
There is no better muse
Than sadness; profound
Melancholy and longing
For what can never return
What will never again be
And who will never again
Fill my life with blossoms of
Lavender and supple ivory
Lace; and in every poem
There is you, in every song
And verse the unmistakeable
Undeniable presence of you
That you no longer remain a
Part of me is the one chaotic
Wellspring of my downfall
And the impetus of my demise
24NOV21
Afterlife
To finally rid myself of
This body and set
Free the best
Part of me
To be left
With only a
Soul and thoughts
And vivid imagination
The reflection in the window
Reminded me what life
Will be like once
I'm gone; it
Will go on
Without me like
It went on with me
Invisible and misunderstood
23NOV21
Before Our Very Eyes
It's happening right before our very eyes
The distorted reality and almost invariable
Consequence of death; it's always the same,
When you close your eyes for the very last time
And the darkness enters the space between life
And light, and the last breath comes as did the
First, silence and serenity overcome you like a
Gently flickering flame; then the winds rip
Across the landscape; thunderclaps and
Lightning bolts explode over threatening skies
That follow you until the end of time when, on the
Final day, they reveal the secrets they've been hiding;
And only then will the answers to all of life's questions
Be answered; only then will the soul be set free; only
Then will we come to realize that we've been living
Our dreams all along in this earthbound paradise
22NOV21
Exhausted
9,614 steps
Four trams and
A bus; morning shift
School runs, afternoon
Shift; the awful stench of
My fellow travelers soused
In pungent perfume and stale
Cigarettes; the waning gibbous
Moon rises brightly in the night
Sky while Sting sings cowboy
Songs in my sore crusty ears
Drowning out the racket of
My daughters carrying on
About this and that; I'll
Take a hot bath and
Get some sleep
21NOV21
Franke, Harry, Marty & Al
I'd known Harry since I was a kid
Growing up in West Rogers Park;
He was one of those older kids I'd
Always admired from afar; when I
Found out he was a drummer, and
Friends with a guy whose band I was
The singer in, I finally got to see Harry
And his band rehearsing in the cold,
Dark, damp basement of the savings
And loan building where my father's
German shoe repairman had his shop;
And then my friend took me to see the
Band at the 11th Street Theater in a
Building my grandmother worked in
For three decades where I would later
Teach English at Columbia College
20NOV21
The Rift
Between the incompatibility of
Who you have become and
Who I have become lies a
Rift of broad divergence;
I once thought that which
Made us different would
Acts as a unifying and
Irrevocable bond that
With the passing of
Time would flourish
Into a sacred and
Everlasting love;
But the genie in
The bottle only
Granted but
Three wishes
19NOV21
Dark Direful Warnings
It's the cycle of full moons
And pizza and meals
Taken much too late
That makes it all
But impossible to
Surrender to these
Dreams; they come
Desired but uninvited;
I enjoy driving through
The countryside and
Meeting up with old
Friends and dead
Relatives; I fear these
Subconscious musings
Are sending nothing less
Than dark direful warnings
18NOV21
Dippity Do
Nothing provokes that
Slanty-mouth smirk quite
Like those moments when I
Stop whatever it is I'm doing
To reflect on the way my life
Has turned out compared to
How I'd always imagined
It would; I think about all
Of the things I wouldn't
Have today if the dreams I
Had yesterday would have
Come true; I know there's isn't
Any point to second guessing
Destiny, but it is comforting,
After all, to possess such a
Keen awareness of one's self
17NOV21
It's Okay
It's okay if they don't choose me
I've grown accustomed to being
The one that's never chosen; the
One who was always picked last
When sides were being made for
Baseball games or dodgeball; the
One who Madeline forgot to invite
To her Halloween party in fourth
Grade; and it's also been okay
That I've never had a callback
For a second job interview or
Been shortlisted; they always
Tell me I'm either too qualified
Or not qualified enough, that I
Lack the one skill they need the
Most; it's okay and I'll be okay
16NOV21
Twelve Years Ago
Twelve years ago
My life was a
Snow globe
Of sorts
Lived in
Awe of life
Slept alone on
The trastero floor
Was beguiled by
Her smile and
While I had
So little, I
Had never
Possessed so
Much or felt so
Extremely fortunate
15NOV21
Temporary Man
From the day I was born
It seems I was destined
To be a temporary man;
A temporary son,
Temporary father,
Brother and significant
Other; I've been easy to
Brush aside, easier to forget
An afterthought, an aftermath,
A picture postcard that is
Pasted onto the yellowing
Pages of a scrapbook;
A discarded souvenir,
A tattered sock unworthy
Of mending; a short-term plan
Discarded amidst forsaken things
14NOV21
The Prodigal Son
I like to think that a
Memory is the same
As a presence, that both
Are held in a primeval space;
I neither blame nor recoil from
Your decision or the path
You chose to travel on;
And while the pain
Has mostly waned,
I am nourished by the
Recollections of yesterday;
Forgiveness is the fragrance the
Violet sheds on the crushing heel;
So, return as far as you can
And I will come the rest of
The way to meet you
13NOV21
Que Será, Será
When one door closes
Another one opens
Que será, será;
When time is
Fleeting and
Of the essence
Que será, será;
When some hearts
Break while others
Forgive and heal
Que será, será;
Where fools
Tread lightly
Wise men fly
Que será, será;
What will be, will be
12NOV21
Winter's Barren Landscape
The trees are nearly bare
Stripped of their once supple
Leaves and everything seems to
Be silent, white and slowly dying;
The impatient winter looms and is
Longing to impart its cruel death
On those most vulnerable; but
Time is our humble servant
And will await the coming
Of spring when death gives
Way to life and the fertile green
Leaves that will adorn the trees in
The splendor of the season; then
The sun will rejoice and warm
Winds will breathe life upon
Winter's barren landscape
11NOV21
A Day at the Mall
It's been about a dozen years
Since I last strolled through a
Mall and spent today in one
Of the largest malls in Europe
It was a bittersweet nostalgic
Experience that transported
Me to the malls of my youth
And to those where I would
Frequent as a young father
In Valencia, shopping at the
El Corte Inglés or Carrefour,
Parking my Yaris on the slick
Squeaky floors of the indoor
Carpark; today we ate in a
Foodcourt, played high-tech
Arcade games and spent ten
Bucks on a box of Ding Dongs
10NOV21
Valerie
Wouldn't that be funny?
I mean, if you had the
Same thoughts as me,
If it had occurred to
You that maybe we
Could actually make
A life together like the
Life we have both been
Longing for, deserving
Of, our whole lives;
That the two of us,
The unlikeliest of
Wayfarers, unite
And lay down roots
On the hallowed land
Our forebearers dwelled
09NOV21
Saint Nicholas
I was all cozied up in bed
Ready for my afternoon nap
And was just about to doze off
When my youngest daughter came
Into my room; "is Sinterklass real?"
She asked me; taken totally by
Surprise, I thought about her
Question for a moment...
"Do you believe he's real?"
I replied; "Yes," she said, but
All the kids in my class say he's
Not real; "I see," said I, then asked
Her about the Sinterklass who visits
Us each year at mommy's work;
"He's not real," she replied as
She walked out of the room
08NOV21
Meet Me at Teds
I'd ask you to meet me at Teds
We can have breakfast while
The kids are at school; I'd like
To get to know you outside of
The constraints of the artificial
Make-believe world (if only to
See how tall you really are!); I
Admire your bravery and fierce
Independence; your unwavering
Dedication to your children and
Career; but mostly it's your smile
And colorful sense of humor; your
Brazen honesty and the childlike
Playfulness I would love to be a
Part of while immersing myself
In the splendor of your radiance
07NOV21
Bedtime Story
I sat there in the darkened theatre
Nestled between the middle-aged
Spanish couple and the sylphlike
French woman, smartly dressed in
A fitted black skirt, black knitted
Turtleneck sweater and high black
Boots; she was with her elderly
Mother to whom she spoke in a
Rich, low voice through her face
Mask that, once she removed it,
Revealed the smooth ivory skin of
Someone half her age; and there
Was a moment during the climax
Of the first recital when the woman
Slowly leaned my way and I was
Sure she would reach for my hand
06NOV21
Gripping Reality
Every day a new device
A new dilemma and a
Severed, stilted view
Of the gripping
Reality of life;
The tempest brings
A gloom that no amount
Of sunshine could disperse;
Your bitterness is a cobweb
Strung along the bricks
Of the frozen cellar
Wall, expanding
Wider and wider
With each particle of
Dust binding to the silky
Fibers no one dares to touch
05NOV21
The Crack in the Ceiling
Drips and drops from
The crack in the ceiling
The incessant rain seeping
In from God only knows where
The pitter-patter of water hitting
The bottom of the plastic
Bucket has all but kept
Me awake this night
And I am reminded
About that awful winter
In Chicago when the ceiling
In the back bedroom caved in
From the heaviness of the snow;
And when the ceiling began
To crack on Bissell Street;
All signs of deterioration
04NOV21
The Darkness of the Night
I love sitting in total darkness
In complete silence, where all
I can feel is the slow constant
Throbbing of my pulse just at
The temples; but the darkness
Quickly gives way to the slim
Breach of light shining in from
The cracks in the door where
Rays of dusty sunshine carry
Memories of those long cold
Nights in Granada, waiting
For Tania to return home and
Seductively take her clothes
Off and jump into my warm
Bed where we would look out
Into the darkness of the night
03NOV21
Departure
It's really none of my business
What you do or where you
Go, but your sudden and
Unexpected departure
Certainly took me by
Surprise; I waited for a
While, walking occasionally
To the window to see if you had
Locked your bicycle to the railing
In front of the canal; but as I
Stood there looking out, I
Caught a glimpse of the
Pale blue sky and wispy
Silken clouds and thought to
Myself what a beautiful day it
Was for renewal and for letting go
02NOV21
The Gift
I remember the day well
Just before Christmas years
Ago in Valencia; the school staff
Gathered around and my son, two
Years-old at the time, was on hand
To distribute the gifts; at the end
Of our secret Santa ceremony,
I was given a special gift
On behalf of the staff;
It was a brown leather belt,
One that I have kept all of these
Years and use almost daily; it has served
Me well and has certainly stood the test
Of time; but in strange and unnerving
Ways, I so often contemplate how
This gift might serve me better
01NOV21
Ghost
I can already sense the emptiness
That no one will feel except me
The lingering remains of an
Apparition; an invisible
Man who no one saw,
A muted voice that no one
Heard and a veiled presence
Never felt; but when the soul and
Spirit depart, those left in the wake
Of solitude will never be alone,
Will never be bereft of the
Love and protection of
A constant, true and
Benevolent custodian who
Will be watching down on those
Who were loved more than life itself