hope is placed where it is kept safe pressed between the pages of a book on the heels of dreamsat the end of a selfless actas the fixed point in a luminous sky hope is a dependable ward against losing one's footing to slip unawares into darkness

  Inside the hot zoneSymptoms hidden under gilt Peg waits for her child

  Body as vessel All the knowledge I hold dearLost between my ears.

  liver spotsmiddle's gone softeveryone's got wisdom and regrets sage lessons from the aged left unopened in a bowlno one's got the patience to examine artifacts the door swings openthe door slams shut Time makes its own arrangementsas we throw each moment on the wheel

  Top right packed too tightFall briskness calls for soup spoonsTarnished and cluttered

  Seasonstake a seatlean inwhisper favors. Turns of the earth loosen secrets. Inhibitionsslither out of a forgotten place. One lastsunset.

  play inside the lines sultry evenings test one's skill positions challenged

  You trample all over your promisego back on your word and make a mockery of trustno one cares how you figure it out in your headtoo much talk produces stacks of double-spaced apologiesthe border between chaos and order constantly shiftsadvanceretreatsorrow and betrayalour heroes are hung out to dry.

draped in fading light — featherweight tales fail to take — out of rotationHeidi found her lazy afternoon marked down in the remainder pile.

The landscape is a riddle. So many left turns that lead right back to the fork. Now that's one ragged road. Craters and bubbling pools of goo. I keep a keen eye on where my feet land, when I'm not mesmerized by the blood red moon. Nights are filled with twisted confessions and writhing reflections.…