Nachtmusik

A nylon tent
can keep out
skunks and bears

can keep in
the warmth of
two intermingled bodies

let in the
smell of wet
pine and trap

the smell of
damp socks and
musty sleeping bags

but our flimsy
fabric walls cannot
keep out the

surrounding symphony of
crickets and creeks
that ring in

our ears as
we fall asleep
to at night


--
July PAD Day 5 - did you hear that?

Man on the moon

Does the man
on the moon
cry for us?

Does he hide
his phosphorescent face
behind stiff hands

and wonder why
he must always
light the way?

Does he face
our blue world
and lean away

wishing he could
hide from our
stiff smiles and

wandering eyes, wishing
man could see
his own light?


--

July PAD Day 4 - night lights over the lake

Greased up

Inspired by the first "summer" song that came to mind ... "Summer Lovin'" from Grease


The scent of sunscreen
always makes me think
of bikinis and boys

the salty sea air
and wet swimsuits
a lubricant for lust

as eyes scan the
sand for some sexy
smile full of promise

--

July PAD Day 3 - in the summertime (music)

A step in the right direction?

I am too young
to know that this
land is ancient
maybe even sacred
and that my footsteps
stir my ancestor's souls

beneath me

I am too blind
to see that this
river has wound its
way through the lives
of my mother's mother's mothers,
women and children
who lived off this land
and built this world

beneath me

I am too wise
not to understand that these
footsteps I'm making
are miles from
my ancestors' paths
and this land will crumble

beneath me


--

July PAD Day 2 - discovery / bop form

Pismo Beach

Inspired by summer family vacations spent in the sand dunes of Pismo Beach and Big Sur


We spent afternoons
rolling down mountains of sand
laughing as we

tumbled like logs,
all limbs and heavy trunks,
crashing our way

through the salty
air and the slow, thick
stick of vacation

flying through timelessness
ever-closer toward the cold embrace
of the Pacific

and the long
wet ride home


--
July PAD Day 1 - camping memory