His Father 6 June 2016

                       (My Father 1981)

A boulder mountain
Of compositions'
Bulk, hardbound,
Notes lined, dreams,
     -Cold, volcanic ash
     -Settles, disguised as
     -Dust motes, black
     -Changed to grey;
Fiery outbursts,
Warning shots of youth,
Some bet time,
Some stepped back,
     -Women heel toed the
     -Tremors, tracing from
     -Line's fault to
     -Cradle's side;
Stick built castle: farm;
Workers; income: time,
Freelancing,
Composing,
     -Bars stop, legs block, 'Don't!'
     -'This, not that way,' 'No!'
     -Draw pictures,
     -Mom, sisters;
Core erupts, barn door
Splinters, invective
Curls, chasm
Consuming,
     -Listening, upstairs,
     -Watching across the
     -Table, when
     -Ankles grabbed;
Weekends, conjuring
Symbols from silence
Scribbled on
Sides of times,
     -Skin surrenders to
     -Scissor's detachment,
     -Map without
     -A treasure;
Empty promises,
The handoff of a
Rent-controlled
Apartment,
     -Tightrope strung between
     -Rent check and drudge work,
     -Perception,
     -Prescription;
'Trust your instincts as
Observer,' he said,
Ground coated
Plate gouged, bathed
     -In acid, ink spread,
     -Wiped clean, filled lines pressed
     -Down, absorbed
     -In sheets pulled;
'Trust your judgement from
Works studied, books spread,'
He said, walls'
Admissions
     -Vetted, venom penned,
     -Victims paraded,
     -Callus spared
     -Hands resigned;
Trust to looks in youth,
Beauty's currency
Travel, meals,
Talent, luck?
     -Draw social circle,
     -Art school naturals,
     -Packed pants? Stalls,
     -And valets;
Broad jacket shoulders,
Deep blue background, but
Shirt's neck left
Unbuttoned,
     -Blood red tie loosely
     -Hitched, father, son
     -Seeking the
     -Right balance;
Bald dome, seated on
Concrete, squinting as
Notes travel
The distance,
     -City's vibrancy
     -Resonates too late,
     -Sound, fury,
     -Extinguished.

6 June 2016