Here are a few short poems writen the last few days, while I’ve been in the hospital for treatment of acute kidney dyfunction related to my cancer. New Years Day in the hospital. I should be going home tomorrow.
The Fifth Floor
On the fifth floor
amidst the sick and dying
the sounds of a lullaby.
In the nursery
a new life
enters the world.
On the fifth floor
no sleep all night.
6AM, anticipating the sunrise
as the town wakes
over the prairie, the sun
mountains painted in glorious shades of red.
I love this world
its friends and loved ones, beasts, joys and heartaches
I would give so much
for another year of sunrises
one more year
to trod upon the earth.
The sun peaks over the prairie hills
Oh, God
Oh, God!
On another note, check out my publications page. I’m on Paypal now and offering free shipping. The free shippin also applies if you want to send a good old check or cash.
Be well and have a good New Year. Raise a toast to all the world’s poets, lovers and holy fools.
Mike
Michael, keep writing….. It’s good for me to cry while reading. Your work is always so powerful and I hope the power of healing can match it. Hugs.
i love these poems—brevity (in every sense!) meets the sight of what strikes the eye!
hospitalized a few years ago for irregular heartbeat, first floor, mid-winter’s day, Las Vegas, NM, IV’s everywhere, nurses warm & efficient, felt persecuted like cleveland poet d.a. levy, wanted to play in the snow, another year of drought, I knew I would have to change my life somewhat, less urgency, less immoderation, more silence, more inviting life deep inside instead of burning it out.
keep strong, Miguel. am thinking of you old buddy.
Hi Mike,
An Excellent poem. Really like your perspective on life. You have such a great positive attitude. You are winning – it just takes some time; and you already know what time now means. Take good care. Mark M>
Hi Mike, Karen said you back in. Damn! You poems are so Japanese in tone, your feelings coming out of the simple description of what is before you.
In answer to your question, I haven’t had anything like what you’ve been going thru, but when I was a grad student in Japan I came down with MS and went blind in one eye (a more than ironic hit on a grad student trying to read all day). The next year I went numb in my legs. Being naturally a slow learner, I said to myself, I’d better change my priorities and way of living, and cut down on the stress. From then on, my whole focus was on being as creative as I could be, and not giving the institutions in my life the time of day. From this experience comes the weird guy you see hanging around the poetry world.
Anyway, I hope you get better quickly and return to our common hangouts.
My best, ran
Thank you all for your comments. Back into the hospital tomorrow, my doc says maybe three weeks. Here is to all the strong and beautiful nurses.
I hope more poems are composting in the heat at the bottom of the pile.
Mike
Mike, I’m sending you serious energy to keep healing and to find new poems “at the bottom of the compost heap.” Poems as lovely and authentic as “On the Fifth Floor.” What a real poem. It strikes me that the poems you’ve written about others facing tough odds (steel workers from PA for example) have earned you the right to recognize and send out to us poems about your own human struggle. Keep us posted about your progress these next seven days . . . and beyond.
Pulling for you —
Rita Kiefer
just reread your note. sorry for the misquote about potential poems composting!!
rita
Rita,
No misquote on the poems composting. I was thinking of a Gary Snyder poem from, I believe, Axe Handles, about stirring the compost and bringing up poems. I don’t have my Snyder with me here in the hospital. Does anyone know the poem?
Mike
Mike,
I am so sorry to hear you are sick and sorry you are in the hospital. Sending you healing energy and wishes for a pain-free recovery. A speedy one at that!
A hospital is a universe unto itself. I’m glad to see you are mining it for gold like this poem. Or maybe, more accurately, you are bringing gold to an odd (and sometimes, as in your first stanza, and oddly beautiful) place. I hope those strong nurses know how lucky they are to be tending to you!
I found a link to the Snyder poem, “On Top.” Perfect image for your situation. It’s in with a few others on this page, enjoy and be well. All of us are praying for you and sending you good good healing energy!
http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/s_z/snyder/onlinepoems.htm
Sandy McRae (from way back in the Poets Against the War days….tho of course, we’re still against it)
Dear Michael!
Through the holidays I was thinking of you, reading
“If You Can Still Dance With It”
and trying to figure out a way of treatment that might be more helpful to you.
But now you will be in treatment for 3 weeks so,
to quote you “Keep on Keeping and be strong”
Strong and good thoughts and prayers going your and Claire’s way
Renee
you be talking “On Top”, stonebelly. and keep writing your way home…
All this new stuff goes on top
turn it over, turn it over
wait and water down
from the dark bottom
turn it inside out
let it spread through
Sift down even.
Watch it sprout.
A mind like compost.
Thank you to Art and Sandra for the Snyder poem, On Top. A poem I truly love and that is absolutely true.
Turn it over
turn it over
Whatever we have is what we work with.
I Saw Myself
I saw myself
a ring of bone
in the clear stream
of all of it
and vowed
always to be open to it
that all of it
might flow through
and then heard
“ring of bone” where
ring is what a
bell does
Lew Welch
always liked that one by Lew.
John
I hope this ordeal will be over soon and we can get back to the business at hand, Mike.
rd
Hello Mike, how are you doing…you wrote a nice poem exactly a month ago today..I am glad to have read it..
Maybe you have heard about me from Claire-she was my penpal since we were 10 years old.
I hope you will keep on writing poems…I will read them..and
tonight and everynight I will say a prayer for you!!!