Tag Archives: freeverse

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puppy love

ain’t nobody gonna love you
like your doggy gonna love you
all big wet tongue
and thumping tail

sloppy tenderness
but he will guard you with his life
(and not only his)
if it should come to that

what did you do to earn
such ridiculous devotion?
nothing at all proportional
a bit of kindness was enough

so i hope that you are grateful
for the undeserved grace
for the unmatched gift
that is puppy love

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jerk cat

jerk cat you frost my cupcakes
you so cute
you so sweet
you so purrsome
you…ow!
goddamnit jerk cat
why sink your teeth in my wrist?

jerk cat you rub up against me
you say love me
you say pet me
you say we friends
you…ow!
effing jerk of a jerk cat
you swat me with claws out really?

jerk cat you wake me with a chomp
i’m like JUMP
i’m like wha??
i’m like damn!
i’m like…breakfast i guess?
you’re like nah bro
imma cuddle up to you and purr

jerk cat you suck
you adorable asshole
how am i supposed to know
that’s your attack purr?

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green 

while the wild green is here she seizes the ground
 she scrambles up in the air like she owns the sky
  as if the very atmosphere were her possession
as if she'll never stop embracing this wormy soil
 squeezing mother earth in a sweaty verdant hug
  that's just tight enough to say i love you dear one
   never so rough or careless as to cause any harm
and yet the green is thirsty for her mother's tears
 for the fall and flow of nourishment as she grows
as she runs madly over the hills giggling with joy
 as if all this life and warm sunlight will last forever
as if autumn were a tall tale made up by a trickster
 and winter a scary story told to frighten little sprouts
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Jesus, Receiver

I don’t call you servants –
I call you friends.

Yes, I needed you.
Yes, I need you.

When I came down from the mountain,
exhausted from saying
all the inexhaustible things,
I needed you – I needed my friends.

When I returned from my solitude
by the sea, and in the barren places,
where I abided in interior community,
I ached for the company of friends.

When I completed my fasting,
I craved more than bread and wine.
I hungered for your laughter and embrace,
my dear ones – my friends.

When I was challenged by those
who didn’t understand my words –
or who understood them all too well –
your presence gave me confidence, friends.

When they took me and lashed me,
and blood and tears fell from my flesh,
even though you weren’t there,
I drew strength from the love of my friends.

And now as I hang here stretched and dying,
as my breath grows ever more ragged,
I weep with those few beloveds who stayed,
and I grieve that I must leave you, my friends

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Show Me the Truth

A Christian,
a Muslim,
a Buddhist,
and an atheist scientist
walked into a coffee shop.

(The Christian and the scientist
were in favor of the pub,
but the other two were not.)

The four of them huddled
around a low table,
clutching mostly hot drinks
(the Muslim had cold brew)
and discussed

faith and surrender
mindfulness and investigation.
And this was their conclusion:

The faith of the Christian,
the surrender of the Muslim,
the mindfulness of the Buddhist,
the investigation of the scientist:

at their best, these are all
the same movement –
to welcome reality as it is,
with all its gentle miracles,
all its cruelest blades.

“Show me the truth!”
cries the whole-hearted soul,
“for I trust that only in truth
can I be free.”

Yet at their worst,
each of these paths trusts only
in the cold certainty of established belief,
closing the door to true understanding.

Let us make a pact
to always examine ourselves
and one another
to ensure that we are avoiding
that snare.

Then the four of them stood up,
embraced,
walked outside,
and looked up, smiling,
into a clear blue sky.

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Big Love

Master,
when I’m awake,
will I still love you?

Yes, child,
you will love me then
with the full potency
of your unlimited compassion
for the soul of each living creature,
for the vibrant community of atoms,
for every shining, ebullient star.
Your love will be infinite,
and it will encompass all.

But Master,
that’s not enough.
That’s not big enough
for you.