Aging Song VII

Where the hell is the crazy glue when you need it?Hold those things together that fall apart.Chipping here, a crack … More

Aging Song VI

Rage all you like against the dying light.It’s a sad joke to think in some wayYou’ll somehow stay the night. … More

Aging Song (5)

I’ve heard it.  Read it.  Maybe you have, too?To simply exist is not trulyLiving life.  So what is it,If you’re living each moment … More

Aging Song (4)

All those frozen memories thawing loose.Fragments unstuck, warming moments.Mine, those panned gold nuggets glittering up. With many false fool glistenings … More

Aging Song (3)

I sing to myself, more hum in my head, The radio soundtrack of youthStuck in my brain, lyrics poorly recalledMore often … More

Aging Song (2)

The younger me could never see omens,Oblivious to foreshadow,Now shining into focus from behind,Backward looking glass reflecting reversedThat younger me … More

Aging Song

The damnedest blocking up of living long,Strapped in by bands and iron barsFrom which desire could never break away.Life sapped … More

Harabeoji

My paternal grandfather,My harabeoji, born and raised inKorea, spoke little English,And I spoke barely anyKorean, so I never had anActual … More

Jigsaw Puzzle

Piece #1 After graduating fromAustin High in Chicago, my mom,Offered a modeling job,Had also been acceptedTo both the Universities ofChicago … More

Of a Feather

My parents loved animalsOf all kinds.  This is the one thing ILearned from them that’s shaped me most.Our home, a menagerieEqual … More

You Win Some, You Lose One

You Win Some, You Lose One Dad, on the boxing teamFor UW Madison,Didn’t realize heWas in training for combat.He wasn’t … More

Existence

My dad completed hisCollege freshman year beforeBeing drafted intoWorld War II.  For the next fourYears, a paratrooper withThe 504th, 82ndAirborne Division, … More

Decaf Me

First time in KoreaI would hunt high and lowFor decaf coffee.Everywhere they’d stare,Their brows crinkling a mixture:Pity and anger,Raising fingers … More

Almost Manna

Bulbuls devour myHawaiian chili peppersScarf them all downLeave me nothing butPerhaps for you a free plantThank random poopingLike bitter melonVines … More

Thank Goodness

The happiness of intoxication among strangers, good peopleTalking among folks from all over the world who haveThis one thing in … More

My Glass of Water

Here’s my rough draft for today, Sunday 06.21.26 My Glass of Water Good or bad, happy or sad, right or … More

Completing the Picture

Here’s my rough draft for today, Saturday 06.20.26 Completing the Picture An older man. An oldering, moldering man. The oldest … More

Strictly Statistically

Here’s my rough draft for today, Thursday 05.28.26. Strictly Statistically             It is a little-known fact, but O.H. and I were … More