(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#139)
snow in hut shadow
bitter heart
refuses to melt
…..
(#140)
abandoned nest
filled with drifted snow
sorrow incubates
…..
(#141)
frozen tracks
my past waits for me
up the road
…..
(#142)
frigid pond
thirsty fox waits in the woods
as I break the ice
…..
(#143)
chilly winter breaths
heron, kitsune and I
speak common tongue
…..
(#144)
no sun no moon
earth in funeral wrappings
all hope is lost
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#127)
serrated sea shells
flay unfeeling fleeing feet
my numb soul bleeds out
…..
(#128)
bits of blue shell
and broken soul mark my fall
from heaven’s nest
…..
(#129)
old pond and ocean
renewed with each thunderstorm
my soul begs for rain
…..
(#130)
your name etched
on every cobblestone
this road leads nowhere
…..
(#131)
frost on suisen
sheen of wistful memories
melts too quickly
…..
(#132)
buds on barren twigs
kanji writ on sleeping trees
promise of the spring
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#121)
old rain barrel
dark waters of
forgotten dreams
…..
(#122)
first snow
white kiku on
autumn’s casket
…..
(#123)
stone cairns
mark my future; stone heart
marks my past
…..
(#124)
no more songbirds
nest in my heart
your voice fades
…..
(#125)
old mountain’s silence
questions answered
as I climb the path
…..
(#126)
rain turns to hail
my heart takes a pounding
from my tears
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#109)
I cast my old net
But time swims by so swiftly
I can’t catch my breath
…..
(#110)
Silver waves arrayed
In blue moon-hued solitude
In both sea and sky
…..
(#111)
These old woods have felt
My grand-father’s father’s feet
Walking through the ferns
…..
(#112)
Hoarfrost memories
Moonless midnights freeze my soul
Crystallize my tears
…..
(#113)
There is warmth inside
Near the hearth so why must I
Choose the frigid night
…..
(#114)
Snow covers my tracks
I cannot go back again
All things lie ahead
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#103)
Bones of the earth split
Emaciated world’s skin
Granite ribs protrude
…..
(#104)
Holes in waraji
Worn through soles through countless years
My soul worse for wear
…..
(#105)
Deafened ears can hear
Whispered symphonies of earth
Deafened hearts ignore
…..
(#106)
Mysteries begin
In the misty distance where
My horizon ends
…..
(#107)
Pieces of my heart
Bread crumbs marking mournful trails
Leading to the past
…..
(#108)
Part the blades of grass
Peer into the infinite
Listen with your heart
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#97)
I have burned my hands
In the furnace of the past
Stoking memories
…..
(#98)
Stars write arias
For the bashful moon to sing
But who will listen
…..
(#99)
I have made my peace
Sitting under willow trees
In the green shadows
…..
(#100)
Does the floating leaf
Fear whitewater’s treachery
It has no regrets
…..
(#101)
Rest my ear aground
Listen to the planet’s heart
Know my place on earth
…..
(#102)
In the hushed forest
Eternity speaks to me
In jade whisperings
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#91)
How can hope survive
Solitary kitchen chair
And the empty bed
…..
(#92)
These old feet are numb
Memories are bitter cold
I must watch my step
…..
(#93)
I sought from the fox
Wisdom; he gave me instead
A flash of his tail
…..
(#94)
Breeze in bamboo grove
Sake choko clattering
Empty memories
…..
(#95)
Who has spilled the sky
Into the pond? Sunset fire
Burns lotus blossoms
…..
(#96)
Once, in the forest
Autumn taught me of sorrow
What will winter bring
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#79)
Under darkened skies
Of depression even my
Shadow flees from me
…..
(#80)
Light devoid of warmth
Casts the moon as villainous
Skulking through the trees
…..
(#81)
Myths of ancient days
Etched in runes on ruined wood
Worm trails on old trees
…..
(#82)
Those cicadas know
What lies ahead is better
Than what’s left behind
…..
(#83)
Desiccated husks
Of bad memories remain
Rattle restlessly
…..
(#84)
Memories of lilac
Wild rose and hollyhock
Melancholy prose
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#55)
Caught like wounded prey
In sharp fangs of granite crags
Dusk sun spills its blood
…..
(#56)
Those coins that fall through
Gaps in floorboards forgotten
Like old memories
…..
(#57)
My heart recalls you
Like my broken bleeding thumb
Recalls the hammer
…..
(#58)
Do my deafened ears
Make me any less human
I hear with my heart
…..
(#59)
Scarlet gilia
Weep sweet tears in sage meadow
After thunderstorm
…..
(#60)
On my back porch step
There’s so much to think about
And so little time
(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley
(#37)
Swathed in winter’s arms
Chilly bosom hushes earth
Snowy lullaby
…..
(#38)
As heron’s plume drifts
Away on a silent stream
Memories of you fade
…..
(#39)
Do worms of the earth
Dream of sunlight; are their minds
As blind as their eyes
…..
(#40)
I’ve tried to catch the
Fleeting breeze in my hands but
I am unworthy
…..
(#41)
In the thunderstorm
Footprints filled with rain water
I have lost my way
…..
(#42)
Near the waterfall
Yellow birds drink from the cups
Of purple flowers
Silent Pariah 