Diesel

by ship they came
Italy to Lovejoy
breathe in
the fuel of work

rounding the corner
the sweet heavy cloud
of hauling

wheel spins center
clutch, shift, release,
accelerate

motor rumbles like grampa 
before the steel mill
heart attack took him

moving product to market
Nakuru to Mombasa
Montecristi to Santo Domingo
Bay of Penty to Auckland

transporting me
and once exotic fruit
to port and home again


© 2012-2022 Brian Brown-Cashdollar

Diesel

Sweet Summer Dukkha

June Yard Work
only seven days into summer
yellow sumac leaves fall

the sharp smell of cut grass
warning surrounding plants

keep mowing!
plenty of time left
plenty of grass to cut


July at Lake Erie
the warmth of noon sun
tempered by the lake breeze

suntan lotion everywhere
usedta be just for the beach

usedta smell
just like sand
 

August Light
summer’s fleeting
on the Niagara Frontier

half this childhood season
just to tell us — almost done

nights creep towards fall
whiles breakfast retreats
from sunshine
to dawn
to dark


© 2013-2022 Brian Brown-Cashdollar

Sweet_Summer_Dukkha

Cool

/* May feel a little rushed, but I like the image of the physics of fear. */

light clinging to snowflakes
snow sticking to everything
a perfect squall
a travel ban
the roads were ours

swerving across medians
spinning through intersections
a high school thrill ride
me, Marty, Red

tires skating under street lights
boys hurtling towards snow banks
instinctively I palm the wheel
in the back Marty squeals

You’re so cool!
as I try to control the physics
of rubber, steel, flesh and fear



© 2014-2022 Brian Brown-Cashdollar

cool