Onward and Upward

You've been talking about death for as long as I've known you.

Maybe that'll be the opening line of my next poem, 

but first I must rearrange all those bottle tops, fishhooks, 

and oxidized grommets you left piled on the beach 

into a message that you can decipher once

you break free of the known universe.

[LSS, 8/2/22]

Escape Velocity 

The water strider bounces on the pond 

until it breaks free of the surface. 

You might think its hard work 

has finally paid off. 

The birds waiting in the willows 

know otherwise.

[LSS, 8/2/22]