Poems from 2022

December

In MemoryI open the door. It is not clear

MarxistsThe other day I walked so far

CompromiseThe schools are at it again, with their furor

Vortex AfterglowIn the afterglow of the morning, I walked

Spring CleaningMorning comes, and birds no longer silent

To Tell This To You, or Changing of the GodsI walk out one morning like any other

You Are The WayListen to me. Listen (I will speak) to this…

Why Obey?Could it be that for some

Back to the MinesI think sometimes we shall never escape

November

HegelWhat did they do to you, Hegel,

Why Reason?I have come to you, naked like this,

Ave Maris StellaStella, bathed in lapis, azure

In Any CaseThose with the higher sense, who observe our way of…

Crimson Days in the Depths of TimeInto the sea he dove, toward another land,

HistoryIt occurs to me now and then

Darkness Becomes YouIn darkness I am reaching

PersuasionIt is strange how our rulers

Freedom's EndI stand upon a precipice,

After "A Late Walk" by Robert FrostMy walk is later, yours

Uncertain TimesLincoln roamed over

No Will to DeceiveGod has grown neurotic these last few centuries,

Untested WaysI am wondering what will become of us,

The Gospel According to UsIf you'll listen, I will tell you

Thing in ProgressI shall pull back the curtain,

No Entry BeyondWe are free now after long bondage,

It is not for meHere they are, as ever, making the weaker

After TomorrowI remember from time to time

October

Risible TimeBorn against odds in a risible time,

No ReasonMany things happen for no reason.

TimeWalk here on this beach with me,

As EverWe no more renew the song

All SilenceThis moment I'm writing to you

September

GettysburgBefore the dawn one evening, I went down

Afterthought on the RomanticsThey strove to bring the dark into the light.

SandcastlesI am watching the children build sandcastles.

Over the AtlanticHow many voices drown in that wind,

One of UsThe veiled criticism always says

Old FlamesAs I sit, I remember the point of the story,

August

Too PlayfulThe poem grows from the same place

Thinking DeeplyI have been to the place

The Ground is LavaLate one morning, I ventured

Such Surprises Must BeThe way scientists mishandle surprises,

Mingled BeingWhat is it that calls for children?

Lady in the RainEvening mistful after rain,

Hitler's BunkerAmericans closing in, after ravaging

Feet of RainYou learn the way but the way changes.

At SeaOnce in awhile, despite expectations,

AletheianSome do not wish to join the project of empire,

On this rockOn this rock,

CraftsmanThe craftsman in this body

The New FrontierIt is and it is not, and, therefore, is.

July

Industrial ManWhen I survey Industrial Man

A Platonist declaresA Platonist declares that all is Soul,

TheodicyThe Nazis proved that God's law

Socrates and ConfuciusIn Persia, some say the great thinkers

Reasonable MeasureAt the end of life's journey

Beatific VisionsI doubt those people on television

Who are they?They have built all our highways.

Near MountainsWhen I consider the electrical wires,

Liberty and JusticeSomeone should tell New England

EmergeIn America, we know God

Belly of the WhaleConsumed by the fool's errand of making life…

June

Virgin QueensNobody can hurt a man more than his wife,

LyceumAristotle and friends walking amiably

Myth at TwilightWill we ever

Mulch by the ScoopI am living in the country again,

LightAt a red light,

Fading FeelingIn our peculiar way,

Science and TechnologyI would like to see

Let GoWandering, questioning,

May

What calls for poetry?She does,

Streets I Never KnewI walk,

ElectricityThe wires, I think,

April

Unauthorized thinkingYou'd make me laugh if it wasn't forbidden.

Far AwayThere's someone powerful far away,

The Winds of ChangeI listen for the winds of change,

TechnologyThe Word

Things ThemselvesUntil I met a woman,

After ReaganWe have been pre-sliced

March

Saving EarthWe have taken lightning captive,

Who is in charge hereI think I shall spend

Phalanx of MindThose Reformers,

January

WordsThe words tumble