I.
sitting on the porch
while the storm’s wind and rain
slowly roll up the coast
II.
the day before the storm
empty shelves throughout the store
ghosts of water, bread
III.
as the rain persists
we emerge in the morning
to watch the bayou warily
IV.
like plovers at the shore
running from each new wave
we move the cars higher, higher again...
V.
as the waters rise and rise
the mice dream of legs
like corn stalks
VI.
by the chemical plant runoff pipe—
that is exactly where to find
the two-headed snake
VII.
above the receding bankwater
the egrets and herons circle,
dreaming of endless bounty
VIII.
the first sun in days
then a cloud-hidden half-moon
stitched across by bats
IX.
the morning breeze
massages the upturned leaves
of the shelter’s rosebush
X.
before each flooded house—
the soggy detritus
of disrupted lives
is a scientist and poet who lives and works in Houston, TX. He has been a juried poet of the Houston Poetry Fest three of the last four years and his work has been nominated for the 2019 Pushcart Prize. In the past year, his poems have been published or are forthcoming in descant, Burningword Literary Journal, Gargoyle, Gulf Coast, Sonic Boom, Riddled with Arrows, and Broadkill Review, among others. His work is also published in a wide variety of journals specializing in haiku and micro-poetry. Indeed, the exterior walls of his small house near downtown Houston are covered with wood-burned and painted original haiku and senryu.
