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"I find"
"Perspective"
After heavy rains I find
An optimist camping directs his gaze high
Tiny stones and pebbles erupted in my flowerbed
And sees the smile of God in the sky
Like baby teeth rinsed from soft soil gums
I extract them from moist sockets
The pessimist lying with head to the south
Making room for expanding seedlings
Swears that God wears a frown on his mouth
And pile them in a tiny monument
dedicated to the hard places
Turning around with his head South too
I find in my heart
The optimist tries out his friend's point of view.
After the tears you inspire subside
From this vantage he sees no mouth, teeth or chin,
Just an eye white obscured by a cheek curved in grin
(Kim Emailed "I Find" To Me On 2/2/99 And
It Once Again
Reaffirmed My Belief In Her Talents As A Poet... Not That I Ever Doubted Her
Talent!)
Compliment?
Once My Friend Raymond
Came To Visit Me
At The Nightclub Where I Worked
He Had Never Been There Before.
Never Seen Me
Outside Our School Setting.
So On A Break I Went Over
And Asked What He Thought
Of This Whole Scene.
Eyes Glittering In The Disco Lights,
He Smiled And Said
"You Dance Like A Whale"
Too Dumfounded To Request An Explanation
I Tried To Get My Head Around That Word
Whale.
Beached Whale? Impossible.
I'm Not Fat
And Intentional Insults Were Not His Style.
Was It Some Kind Of Mexican Idiom
That Didn't Translate Well
From Mayan To Spanish To English?
I Decided He Choose A Wrong Word.
My Form Fitting Blue Dress And Fluid Movements
Had Put Him In Mind Of Swimming Dolphins..
But Now, Years Later I Think I'm The One
Who Chose The Wrong Word.
He Said "Wail", Not "Whale".
Instant Reputation
Once When I Was In College
We Had An Impromtu Party
On Thursday Night
My Friend Raymond And Jorge
Just Showed Up With A Bottle Of Presidente´
So We Drank It.
Not Wanting Them To Drive Home Drunk
I Insisted That They Sleep Over
And We'd All Go To School Together In The Morning.
I Shared My Roomate Anna's Bed,
Jorge Took Mine,
And Raymond Got The Couch.
The Next Morning Since His First Class Was Later
And He Was Hung Over
Raymond Decided To Take The Bus.
So I Kicked Him Off The Couch
And Sent Him UpstairsTo My Room
To Sleep It Off Out Of Everyones Way.
We All Caught Up With Each Other
That Afternoon In The Crowded Quad
With Dozens Of Students In Transit Between Classes.
I Asked Raymond "How Did You Sleep?"
He Answered In An Amplified Hurt-Your-Hangover Voice
"Kim, Your Bed Is Too Damned Soft!"
So Some Heads Turned, No Big Deal,
Until Jorge, Clutching His Temples, Retaliated even Louder
"Yeah! I Know What You Mean!".
Insult to Injury
That's a swell swell
On your arm Aram.
Did a base baseball player
Purposely strike you with an inside curve?
Ok, ok, so you got a double and I got walked.
No need to rub it in.
Quit bugging me Eli
My arm hurts.
Easter Sunday
Driving North on I-5 alone
Nothing to look at but the fish car in front of me
Big and blue, moving slow in the slow lane
Two grey heads heading home from sunrise service.
His bumper sticker annoys me
Such an obvious lie
Proclaiming "Jesus is my best friend"
His real best friend is named Harold.
A retired Hughes aircraft engineer
Jesus is just another gardener.
He shows up on Wednesday
With Jamie and Jose'
In a beat up cow truck
Full of rakes and mowers
I'm sure this old man in front of me
Never invites Jesus in for a beer
After the grass is cut.
No way are they friends.
6 Phone Calls
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Where have you been?"
"San Francisco. Why?"
"I've been trying three days
to reach you to tell you I got Married!"
"You WHAT? To who?"
"Her name is Debra. You don't know her..
just me her myself on Wednesday. We got Married on Friday"
"Sounds like true love..."
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Have You been calling here and leaving music on my answering machine?"
"No. Why?"
"Somebody has and it bothers my wife.
she thinks it's a secret code and I'm seeing someone on the side"
"Sounds like the honeymoon is over..."
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Have You seen Debra?"
"No. Why?"
"We had a fight and she left. Yesterday."
"About What?"
"She was looking through my portfolio,
complaining that her photo wasn't in it. So
I offered to take some. But then she said doesn't
want to be in that book full of sluts."
"HEY! I'm in that book!"
"She doesn't want me to be a photographer anymore."
"Sounds like you need a marriage counselor..."
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Do You want to buy my sports car?"
"You're sellinmg it? Why?"
"Debra and I decided we need a fresh start. We're
moving to Las Vegas (where her mother lives) We need the cash.
and Debra doesn't like that car anyway. She thinks I've had sex
with other women in it."
"Sounds like you are totally whipped..."
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Have you seen Debra?"
"No. Why?"
"She been gone for three days. No one has seen her. I Thought
maybe she went back to L.A.. Her mother says not to worry she does
this all the time. She'll come home when she gets hungry."
"Sounds like the fresh start didn't solve anything..."
Ring Ring
"Hello?"
"Do you still have my car?"
"Of Course. Why?"
"I want to buy it back."
"I thought Debra Didn't like it?"
"Debra's dead."
"WHAT?"
"She disappeared again. I didn't even bother to look for her this time.
The one time I didn't call the police to find her, they found her. Overdose."
"Thanks for being my only friend that never says 'I told you so'
or 'Serves you right'. I've decided to stay here. I've got a job
photographing showgirls. So I really want my car back. Can I Have It?"
"Sounds like a speedy recovery..."
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