For What It Is (+1)

Old men

see death

more clearly

When young

all life

is blind

The magic in

that voice

who calls

In

salutary

rhyme

Old men

embrace

the knocking

That

signifies

the end

Their souls

intact

for travel

Their

legacy

befriends

That road

beyond

tomorrow

Where

posterity

inures

Awaits

the man

who braved the storm

And leaves

this world

— secure

(Dreamsleep: October, 2025)

My Sins

I stare in the mirror

the devil stares back

Laughing and sneering

his taunting attack

“I bought you, I own you

now run, try to hide

Your soul has been mortgaged

your spirit is mine”

I run to the yard

and come back with a brick

At the silvery glass

I throw and then kick

The pieces all splatter

and smash on the floor

As a roar can be heard

from the rafters and more

A fire has started

the attic ablaze

With bats in the air

the demon is raised

I reach in my shirt

for the cross round my neck

For my Grandmother’s promise

to preserve and protect …

And the heat that it carries

burns bright in my hand

As I point it aloft

at the horns and demand ...

“A Rosary upon you

return to your cave

My faith is restored

— my sins he forgave”

(Villanova Pennsylvania: May, 2017)