wishing you a peaceful and progressive new year!!

for you, on the eve of this new year...

i wish that all of your joys outweigh your worries.

i wish that whatever road you're searching for
appears beneath your feet.

i wish that anger and negativity falls from
your back like water.

thank you once again for sharing in my work
and coming to visit my blog!! and i promise
you bigger and better things for 2011!! have
fun and be safe out there!!!

when steam rises(to sagal)

the rwandan statue
of a mother and child
still stands tall on my dresser
faint traces of perfume
still reside on the envelopes
that bear your delectable script
and i cant help but
think about that tenderness
i used to kiss below your ear
at the curve of your neck
every time i put this tim horton's mug
to my lips
i'm left with memories
still warm as the space
between my arms
that you no longer fill
and each time that steam rises
your kiss
stretches across my skin
maybe once again
it will stretch across time
regret and distance
when happiness was yours and mine.

quote of the day 12.29.10

'The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.'

- Mohandas K. Gandhi

haiku 11.18.07(to sagal)

swans envy you your
gentle grace; perhaps your walk
makes the breeze jealous.

untitled 7.31.07

i don't want anymore
love poems
unless they're the ones
etched on my heartstrings
by your eyes
in
chamomile and caramel
please
look at me
that way again
and compose more
to frame all of my sunsets.

serenity on the road forward.

hey folks, i haven't been updating for quite a few days
now. part of the reason is that i was still coping with
the loss of my grandmother. the other part is, i've been
in a period of quiet, heavy reflection. it's always said
that the holiday season evokes(or should evoke)a lot of
emotions. for me, it's no different. but the overwhelming
emotion or feeling is, serenity. serenity to let go of
past hurts and present fears and future worries. this state
of mind is exactly what i need going into this new year.
because while i've accomplished another goal in publishing
my second book, i want to ensure that i keep setting and
reaching bigger and better goals with my craft and my own
personal growth. in the long run, your legacy is more than
words on a screen or page. it's who you are, who you choose
to show to the world day in and day out.

i'm grateful to you for stopping by and checking out my
writing and i promise there WILL be more to come in 2011.
stay tuned and please spread the word!!!

tree of faith (for dorina alexander)

she
took up roots in the land
of sunshine and smiles
her voice that of a songbird
a heart that stood as wide as the horizon
she was
willing to let her spirit tell the story
within the whisper of leaves
willing to bare her soul so
you can see the rings
her life left behind
i recall all of those times
her hugs enveloped me
how they gave me shade and shelter
like windswept branches
and she bore beautiful fruit
that stretched across years
oceans
even after her going home
see she was
more than my grandmother
she was
that tree of love and faith
and the seed of her strength
lies in my heart
always.

haiku 7.12.07

love poems are to
be lived daily even if
you have nobody.

quote of the day 12.16.10

"The tree remains, but not the hand that planted it."
- irish saying

for my grandmother, Dorina Alexander...rest in peace.

A train, 11:18 P.M.

he was
a homeless pharisee
looking for that buck fifty
that would lend him a temporary paradise
a distraction from the lice
that clung to loose and wiry locks
and looked to feast on his scalp
barefoot on a subway car
his eyes viewing some sort of peace afar
he held his hand out
as others held their breath
and clenched their noses for the stench
the flesh of his feet had worn away from his toes
making them look like fossils reborn
a homeless pharisee
who couldn't have seen
life turn out this way
if only one could lend him
hope
instead of loose change.

books for sale...i got books for sale!!!

folks, i've still got copies of both the 2nd run of
'lovestoned' and 'wife of the heart' up for grabs!!!
if you want a quick stocking stuffer for the holidays,
grab one now!!! all books are now $7 until Dec.25th!!!
contact me at infinitewords@yahoo.com!!!

some silent moon

some silent moon
waits for some souls
gone too soon
breathing stardust
that settles their ordinary pain
it's easy to believe
in outer space
if your earth is built
of torment
some silent moon
holds all of the poor souls
free from hurt
it's that star that grows extremely bright
for a minute at a time
furthest from your mind.

4.11.10

tanka #13

all night i wished
her hands cupped something else
beside her cognac
passion is virile drink
the sweat it brings makes you think.

9.11.06

haiku 9.4.09(for aviva)

whenever i look
at your skin, lemons become
nothing but sugar.

quote of the day 12.9.10

“Love is or it ain't. Thin love ain't love at all.” -- Toni Morrison

haiku 1.1.10

i let my fingers
drink the tears from your cheek; my
heart was that thirsty.

busboys and poets showcase, washington dc, 12.3.10

(photos courtesy of 4sightfilms)

last friday i had the pleasure of being at one of
DC's most prominent spots for poetry, jazz and food,
Busboys and Poets over on 14th and V Streets. the
showcase was hosted by the very vibrant NeoPosie
(forgive me if i got the spelling wrong!!) it was
the first time i've been part of an open mic in a
long time and it reminded me of why i loved hitting
up as many as i could in the past. it was a great
experience, one that i hope to repeat in the near
future!!!

haiku 3.28.10

castles of sugar
always melt with the rain;shame
since you meant so well.

untitled 4.3.08(to sagal)

who am i
to dream of you clothed
in regal purple
and my arms?
who am i
to cry for you
when tears do not run from your own eyes?
who am i
to ache for your voice
as flower petals do for soothing rain?
i am a man
who is drunk with the beauty that is your name
besotted both at the soul and lips.

haiku 4.21.07

blue morning chill is
what wakes me as the city
sleeps off its own high.

haiku 11.18.07(for sagal)

the sea of longing
lies between our voices;make
your bridge towards me.

World AIDS Day...reflect.

i'm taking a departure from the usual flow of this
blog to honor all of those who've lost their lives
to AIDS and who suffer from it now. i do have an
issue with one campaign out there and that is the
campaign of 'digital death' on Twitter. Usher, Lady
Gaga and others are doing this to raise funds for
charities to fight AIDS and promote awareness. i'm
glad they're in the fight don't get me wrong, but
wouldn't it be more prudent, more realistic to
promote the charities, introduce new ideas like
holistic healing? anything except something that
seems so...backwards? maybe it's me. but take this
time to reflect on just how much AIDS has made an
impact on this world...and how we can stop it. each
one teach one.

uneasy blossom(to aislin)

i compare your smile
to the hesitant opening
of a cherry blossom
unsure of its beauty
it speads slowly
surely
until its radiance sears itself
into spirit and mind.

haiku 5.1.07

her toes did curl up
his eyes did roll back and
they slept in honey.

an announcement on a new project!!!

i'd love some feedback from you guys...and please
stay tuned for more details!!!

Follow me on Tumblr!!

hey folks, i've got a nice, growing Tumblr blog right
here for your web-surfing pleasure:

http://wanderingpoet.tumblr.com/

just another look at my words and thoughts if you
will...*cheeses*

rock n' roll betty

see you could be
my rock and roll betty
the opening riff of clapton's 'bad love'
loving me so good
i'll swear that the sun begins in your eyes
we'll sit together
with irish coffees
and dissect our desires
drowning dislikes with laughter
i want you to
scream into my shoulder
until you sob like janis
to have our conversations
seem like lyrics
that some teenage couple
with a bottle of boone's and hope
will recite years from now
i want you
to be that rock and roll betty
wreaking beautiful havoc in my life.

heartshadow.(or a visitation to a past mood.)

there are moments one has that seem to darken
the mood. they cause immediate and seemingly
overwhelming despair.

yesterday, i got swept up in one of those moods.
so much so, that i shut down. something i RARELY
do. when it gets to that level, i usually make
the choice to ride it out, no matter how somber
or how painful. because trying to fight it or
act like its non-existent makes it worse. i once
called this a 'heartshadow'. it's not my term, i
actually found it in salman rushdie's 'haroun
and the sea of stories.'(which by the way is a
GREAT book)

i'm here to say, i've gotten through it. and for
those still stuck there, there IS a light beyond
the darkness and pain. will yourself to get there,
fight it, scratch and claw and you'll find that
peace within yourself again.

silenced stride

in honor of Cafe Nema, a DC wellspring of jazz that
unfortunately closed this past october.

jazz
should always rise
from the belly
and spill overflow almost
full of steam and spice
walk in the door
and it washes over you
so that you become one with the street
literally
sink your teeth into piano strides
and let your tongue nibble
on saxophone solos so good
you swear they've not only raised
those long gone
but they've decided to sit in between
amen corner meetings
jazz
should always rise from the belly
and sitting here
in candlelight embraced by brick
and brown skins and smiles
you realize that this place
makes it a beautiful stew for you.

summer's dew(for sagal)

mornings like this
begin with silent jazz
and silver hues
my mind
replays that last image of you
watching me leave
i thought then
that your tears would flow again
until i realized
that this summer lost
was nothing but
every tear you've shed
that the heavens chose to match.

lingering sugar

she exhaled on entry
and all of those butterflies
that danced in her stomach
became liquid rainbows
broken down to crystallize
into that vocal sugar i love to hear
which is why she still sounds sweet
hours after i've left her covers.

getting known across the pond!!

i'm happy to announce that i am now a part of
Write Out Loud, a website devoted to poets and
their performances based out of the United
Kingdom. i hope to learn a good deal artistically
from the writers on the site and i'm looking
forward to share my words with a new audience.
the website link is below in case you want to
check it out:

http://www.writeoutloud.net/public/index.php

NaNoWriMo begins!!!

well, November is here and that means it's time for
NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writers' Month!! This is
a month long event that encourages people to write
enough to create their own novel. I've attempted to
do it twice already, and this year I am determined
to succeed!! I will keep you all posted as the month
progresses!!!

winter's summer (for ei'ver leblanc)

(image of apedemak, egyptian god of nubian origin)


somewhere
beyond skies and suffering
you've returned to
leaving footsteps to blow in the wind
beside those autumn leaves
we'll look for you
walking within that side of the moon
for your spirit
will burn brightest
in that twilight and silence
eternal summer in the midst
of winter
is the legacy you leave
beyond all seasons.

brand new webstore open for business!!!

hey folks!!!

if you're interested in buying a book from me
(or several :D )check out my brand, spanking
new webstore!!! the web address is below:


http://www.freewebstore.org/108-Press

thanks for all your support!! happy reading!!

my new book, 'wife of the heart' is HERE and waiting for...YOU.

the copies are being snapped up, and if you don't want to
miss out, get your copy TODAY!!! tell a friend, tell ten,
tell your mama and dem!! email me at infinitewords@yahoo.com
for your order, only $10 US/$12 CAN!!!

solitary leaf(from the archives)

let me
walk upon the moon in your heart
reading caligraphy
where water reigns
take me
where you keep your secrets
form your own religion
building floating temples
in your speech
guide me
to enlightenment
that composes your truth
a gentle song framed
by your smile.

untitled 2.9.06

she said,
"kiss me
like there was gold at the back of my throat
and silver on my tongue
and you were broke as hell."
well,
my pockets WERE near empty...

lemon slice

she called me juicy
akin to the innards of fruit
i could hear myself
being savored on her lips
and i wondered
if she'd take the time
to release the seeds
or let them sprout in her mind
i clung to her
sticky sweet to the point of sickly
fulfilling her spirit
until
she began to stay away
preferring grapes instead.

the new book is available...get yours today!!!

check me for your copy at:

http://108press.blogspot.com

quote of the day 10.12.10

The moment you have in your heart this extraordinary
hing called love and feel the depth, the delight, the
ecstasy of it, you will discover that for you the
world is transformed.

- jiddu krishnamurti

the initial slice

the first thing you feel
is a breeze
it's like curtains giving way before a window
how the skin separates
and then
there's a chill
underneath the pools of sweat
rivulets
feel like
ready made snowflakes
your blood pressure
makes like the kicksnare on a screamin' jay hawkins LP
and what makes it all the more frantic
all the more crazy
is that you don't notice
you've been cut
until you see
crimson crystals
spilling out to tell the world
you're another part of its pain.

a ribbon of wanting(for sagal)

cutting the ribbon
that tied us together
was easier than i thought
it no longer sears into the flesh of my heart
but i wonder
from time to time
if you still wear it
does it grace your neck
and drift
along those places my lips walked
is it cinched around your wrist
your pulse letting it rise
like blades of grass underneath a sudden wind
or have you tucked it away
in a book you figure you'll never get around to read
to keep from feeling
that tenderness
that had to leave
to be honest
i still have my piece of ribbon
draped within my spirit
it adds that extra color
when thoughts of you
make my mind grey
if they could ever be sewn together again
this ribbon of want
i'd kiss each thread
until the end
for now
i am only bound by you
in past dreams.

sneak peek at the cover of my newest creation!!

for more info, check out 108Press.blogspot.com!!!

'lovestoned', my first published book is available once again!!

now i know there's a couple of you out there asking
the following questions:

1)where the HELL have you been since may?
2)WHEN did you get a book published?

well, to answer the first question, i've been
enjoying the summer but also working real hard
on other projects so i've neglected the blog
badly. no more however.

and to answer the second question, 'lovestoned'
made its debut in the summer of 2008. that initial
first run sold out in a couple of months and now
i'm releasing a second print for those that missed
it the first time around. this is also in celebration
of my newest book, 'wife of the heart' which will
debut sometime in september of this year. for any
of you interested in ordering a copy of either
book, email me at infinitewords@yahoo.com.

alchemy of the pavement

i've learned how to bleed
now i'm learning how to turn it
into wine
'cause i'm tired of draggin' my behind
to a plexiglass house of wasting time
better known as your local bodega
if i'm there too often
i can see life leaving my mouth
in short cumulus clouds
accompanied by phlegm
and time does stand still
but so does my motivation
i'm learning
to be a street alchemist
to make something valuable
that no one ever thought was worth
a damn:
my words
my thoughts
my heart
my soul.