Lava Tube

           Tunnel,

     in the ground,

darkness all around;

   Stepping down,

      wet rocks;

   trying not to slip

      

      Roots hang 

    from charcoal,

 dripping with water

      Molten rock;

       taffy flows, 

        stretches,

    dissolves Earth

        Eyes, giant

 then they disappear,

        altogether 

           Watch,

         your head,

      rock sculptures,

  hang from the ceiling

     If your flashlight 

               fails,

           reach out,

   feel your way through 

        Something soft,

             cool, wet,

           grows deep,

         along the wall,

      Flashlight flickers,

             reveals;

       greens, yellows,

            oranges

       Bacteria, worms,

              spiders,

          make a tube,

           their home

            Flip flops;

       loose toes, skin,

           scraped off,

          by lava rocks

       Touching the floor,

           smooth clay,

           sharp glass,

          Is there light?

           Move slowly,

             cautiously,

          trust one path,

              leads out

             Lightness;

          fills darkness,

       restores humility 

Enter Sandman

Spiderwebs the color of snow and sand wisp forming a crown around the sandman’s sun-kissed head. Flaps of brown skin dangle over the waistband of his frayed board shorts, his ass slipping out the backside. His beach ball belly bounces and gracefully vaults over fossilized corals, piled and fused together into boulders along the shoreline of Pupukea. They point their serrated funnels in all directions, ready to slice apart his brown bag papery skin. The timeless lizard knows well how to avoid the coral fossils with the sharpest razors, and the slimey lava rocks that will toss him flat on his ailing back. With his substantial weight, he only trusts the massive flat ones that don’t wobble or lie sideways. Navigating across the coral graveyard is only for a seasoned chess master. Sandman staggers through the labyrinth by artful toe pointing and tiger crouching. His crooked spine steers a lingering branch, touching down into splintered bowls of calcium carbonate. His flip flop clings desperately to the layers of peeling dead skin on the soles of his burnt feet. He finally spots a familiar cavernous passage that lowers him to a bright yellow patch of coarse sand, a welcome sensation to his talus and tarsals. A wave rushes into the yellow oasis, greeting his burning calves and bringing instant coolness. A startled rockfish scampers at his arrival, dodging his feet and taking refuge underneath a coral outcropping. The sandman slinks down into the secure yellow patch and conducts his heat into the gentle pool of water whirling around him. As the washing machine twirls him in and out of the coral graveyard, he grips a tombstone to keep from thrashing against the splintering rock wall. The water moves out and he spats a marshmallow loogie into his diving mask, smearing it into a thin, clear film across the glass lens then presses the frame firmly against his saggy face. A wave rolls in deep enough for him to make an exquisite merman dive over the pointy corals and into a pool of Moorish idolfish waiting to guide him into a sunken garden of cerebral corals. His stiff shoulders and vertebrae loosen from one another as they spread out into the salty bath. Arms extend outward into flippers, legs splash and kick his tail flying upwards and downwards; aquamarine delight sprays into the sky. Pock marks and stretch lines along his back take in the water and exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen, fueling his sea legs for a deep dive to say hello to the Yellow Tang and Parrotfish hiding in a decaying coral outcropping. They dart up towards him and take a nibble at the dead skin and tasty jam between his toes. Their nibbles tickle him but he does not mind too much, for in their snacking they gently steer him to a rocky structure where he spots the silvery school he always intended to join. The water is suddenly dense with silver sparkly streaks, streamlining, swirling ovals in a single swollen heap. His pulse quickens, gills widen, fingers-cupped together, he swoops upward, skims the surface and butterflies eagerly into class. He throws off his mask and lets go of his snorkel. A blinding sunray gleams along the surface, obscuring the sandman’s silhouette, his stroke fades into a column of silty green solution, sinking fast into the dense, viscous bottom. 

Summer Repose

Summer is for stretchpants;

all day long.

Summer is for sleeping in until 8:30 or so…

Summer is for shopping;

one dinner at a time,

perusing the market for the most colorful and fresh things to eat,

spending the late afternoon chopping vegetables and mincing garlic while listening to public radio,

Summer is for sitting with cats on the ground,

giving them sticks, strings, and brown paper bags to attack,

Summer is for stretching and organizing sweater boxes in between yoga poses,

 

Summer is for seeing friends old and new,

walking and talking through the park,

Summer is for dropping off a bag of treasures at the Goodwill, 

then sifting through their shelves for an 8x10” frame for a new print, that is exactly two dollars and fifty cents,

Summer is for salvaging empty bottles of olive oil, hair conditioner, and spices, and taking them, to be refilled;

instead of recycled or thrown away.

Summer is for standing back;

noticing the walls,

the space between two pictures, 

the food smeared above the trash can, 

the picture frames slightly tilting,

Summer is for conquering the cords competing for the same electrical outlet,

zip tying them together,

Summer is for hammering a nail or two into the wall,

leveling out the pictures on the wall, 

adding one or two,

sponging off the smudges of sauce and coffee grounds from the countertops,

listening to the cars zoom past,

and the sparrows making their nests.

Worthwhile

Travel

Is the -

backache, headache, swollen knee, and heartburn worth it?

Scratched up, a little bit burned,

disheveled, disoriented, sleep deprived,

Taking time, taking a risk to go somewhere new,

May leave you battered, blistered and catching the flu.

Wandering around,

stuttering at strangers,

misplacing important papers,

Desperately in need of a two-hour… shower.

Last minute change of plans,

takes a toll, and does demand,

unworldly patience-

Sleep walking through the street,

bumps all over forgot the deet,

Assuming your traveling companions know which route to take,

can be a terrible mistake..

feathers get ruffled, at mention of walking further,

Why not take an Uber or a taxi? Instead of a bus/subway combo?

Mom and Dad conspire together because they know,

They will save at least thirty bucks, if we take public transportation,

Still, the trio holds it together, 

Regrouping amid lots and lots of coffee,

Dazed and confused,

Walking through the streets,

Supporting each other’s ideas,

Scrambling to the gate,

About five minutes too late,

Was it all worth it?

Could we have done better?

Maybe, … probably, but at least we stuck together.

Yes, and Yes,

And, that counts as a success!

Bobbers

You fooled me again!

with your bulbous bladder,

blades climbing up your forest ladder,

bobbing up and down,

playing with me like a clown

waves rolling in and out, 

making me jump about-

“I spot an otter peeking at me!”

I cross my eyes so I can see,

But no! It’s just you and your hip-hop dancing crew,

feathery fronds paddling the blue,

Escaping the white water crash,

bobbers ducking down in a lightning bolt flash,

sun rays beaming down,

revealing your gilded crown,

a seal leaps up from oceanic depths,

Oh darn, it’s just you!,

dense trunks holding fast,

Harboring mollusks, barnacles, whichever crustaceans,

are around for this merry maritime occasion!

Suctioning to rocks,

camouflaging seabird flocks,

swaying with the ocean currents,

a 32-million year old occurrence!

long stems covered in slime,

extending your stalks in hardly no time.

But, you need to watchout! 

For the urchins munching down on you,

They have already decimated a swath of your crew!

Laminarle, nurturer,

safe keeper, 

of prodigious ocean critter,

So underappreciated...

with this warming water, will you be acclimated?

I want to thank you for all of your forest gifts,

Despite your taunts, I adore your tidal drifts.