moveable parts

outsourced:

living by watching
glowing television screens during dinner,
conversation cooked by writers in tanks,
& an affinity for sighing

at the perfect sentimental moment:

snowfall, flakes caught in a wool sweater
& music swelling to soundtrack
the scene of a thousand glistening
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasmiles

usage:

Emotion seized in a container
to evoke a pure silence; water holding memories,
small shining stones, a paper degree proclaiming:
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabecause reader’s eyes tire
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaquicker than attention spans
the transportation of bodiesaaaaamovement must be made
through seasons/states aaaaaaaanew links & methods
change in crossed borderlinesaaaaimprints of new reading styles
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahyper-explication
stealing formulas

or proving time can be
condensed, a ring in my pocket.

tanks:

containers for dreams, small snacks in zip-locked packages, or
a couplet collection of assorted pocket change

held in a model home
in the heat of summer

without conditioned air
as recorded on post it notes

following a specific blueprint aaaaaaaaaaa(dual stacked stanzas)
for love, silence, or success

a travel soundtrack documented on souvenir cups--
each time water poured a memory:

late night coffee at Luke’s dinner,
degrees of universal experience

outsourced on airwaves, familiar pattersn
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa(smile kiss repeat)

connections spanning multiple pages,
television seasons, memory drinks, post cards

to be sent (relived)
after burial.

alternative usage:

Vehicles for war
deployed

just because.

change:

payment for movement on the highway, through tunnels &
toll booths,
children in the backseat snacking on sliced apple smiles

dreaming in colour because of Abbey Road

a method of mood shedding not
to be confused with outsourcing, as
change is far more drastic & far more

likely to fail in job hunting
aaaaaaa(even with the presence of a college degree).

usage:

Once a boy found a bag of his Nana’s
pocket collections; old coins &
miniature notes written in sprawling
curved cursive weather soundtracks. They recorded leafs
falling, the crinkling crunch of snow beneath feet,
sitting on a couch covered in a
brown & orange crochet network, & summer tanks

all signed with an,

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaXOXO

smiles:

sticky with spring
an energy linking soundtracks
& television programs in
a formula to ensure
the boy understands emotional gravity.

Also expressed in excursions
(outsourced adventures for a
sphere of privacy), sunsets,
daily cups of tea, satellite imagery
mapping the perfect proposal point:
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaabounced signals off space debris
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaspy down to detect traffic pattersn,
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaapersonal change,the construction of
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaemotion holding tanks,intersection points,
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa& directions.

usage:

As recorded in the town charter
the movement must measure 35 º to be considered
truly happy.

soundtrack:

mostly Beatles mix tapes
composed by my father
magnetic vignettes rolling on plastic spools
tracing the route to Nana’s house
to a degree
aaaaaaaaaa frozen & held;
a polyphonic photograph chronicling
snow fall,aaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaa, a kiss,
(whiteness to be read as “a blank space between two commas”)
an epiphany, a proposal, a change, or visits to Niagara, Newport, Monticello.

Yet somehow, one part always is less interesting;
the middle sibling holding their
tiny juice tank of behavior flavor
they will never learn,

reading only read in heads
the action of eyes outsourcing
mouth movements so the words will never
smile upon the exit of a car
with a self-chiropractic pop.

usage:

When a poet is a composer, sometimes
aaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaa silence
(an anthem for Silentists).

degree:

the amount of time a single daydream can sustain
aaaaaaaaaaaaaa outside an academic vacuum

aaaaaaaaa, or the ride on 24
to Levittown

where the kids sat in the other room
during meal times outsourced
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa silent.
(still, soundtracks of late 60’s change played in the boys head)

A measure of time tanks passing
in research papers & poems.

The action of burying old papers, post cards, self-help guides
in bottom desk drawers, the soil scented with old spice
& copper. After time, something new.

usage:

In every photograph
my face a slanted Charlie Brown smile (30º)
muscular movements instead internalized
to a collection of road trips, season finales,
evening walks, breakfast & the Times
in an old tea tin
state quarters shining
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa (Connecticut my favorite
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa the charter oak
hiding history in aaaaaaaaaaaaaaopen limbs cradling
a parchment document aaaaaaaaspring leaves on the coin’s face,
timelines for futures aaaaaaaaaasprawling silver intricacies,
spent on employment,aaaaaaaa branches cut into metal
rings, laundry, travelaaaaaaaaa centered in Stars Hollow with
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaa plenty of small town charm)
to pass us into tomorrow.

the poetry cube

side 6

structures rooted in ground; folded memories steep between clouds

side 5

eye contact under sky pens photos blurred vanilla smiles

side 4

bridges solved cold weather patterns with cross town links

side 3

defined history, hands holding. direction following red brick road

side 2

sign’s words worn thin; incorrect metro stop stuck suburban

side 1

pigeons are gray doves adoring statues, sidewalks, steam vents