This place flattened
And stretched
The trees and their shadows
Into one long dark path.

They used to run
And plod
Through this brilliant grass,
Now combed and pinned tightly to the ground.

Silly tradition,
Moving that tassel
And flashing I Love You’s;
Flashes snap; smiles fade.

This place used to be
Filled with you,
Stomping, shouting, whooping,
Climbing these trees and their shadows.

The grass longs for your feet,
The trees long for your weight,
I long for your little emergencies,
Your collective eyebrows, Your elbows.

I miss your bruised knees,
Your endless complaints,
Your excuses, your wild voices,
This place is flat.

It stretches the trees
And their shadows,
Pins down the smooth grass.
I’ll sit on the steps and wait.

Frustration

We came with notebooks and pens.
These are not weapons.
Not on purpose.
We came with our ready hands.
Not to fight,
But to talk.
We came knowing you.
Knowing you don’t listen,
We came anyway.
We stayed to watch you:
Make a phone call.
Change your mind.
Wander off to get cake.
We stood when it was our turn.
You stayed seated.
We watched you draw a bell
And delegate our feelings to the edges.
Between bites,
Your corners stained with frosting,
You told us to love you.
You told us we are appalling failures.
You told us you cried.
Someone asked you for honesty.
And crumbs fell out of your mouth.
We left knowing you.
Knowing you didn’t listen,
Unclenching our fists
And sweeping our laps
With our palms.

The Opposite of Friend

What is the opposite of friend?
A dangling question;
Drowning fishes;
The Arizona Desert.
Unexpected silence.

Growing up in my family
Was much like hiding.

When I was little,
I owned a microscope set.

As it turns out,
I am all-seeing but not all-knowing.

When I close my eyes,
I hear a song:

‘Cause there’s a Continental Trailways leaving local bus tonight, good evening
You can have my seat, I’m sticking round here for a while
Get me a room at the Squire, the filling station’s hiring,
And I can eat here every night, what the hell have I got to lose?
Got a crazy sensation, go or stay? now I gotta choose,
And I’ll accept your invitation to the blues

I am not interested in geography;
What I want to know is,
When?

What is the definition of friend?