hearts.

Cercis canadensis

Beautiful heart-shaped leaves; this plant is one of my favorites. It also has gorgeous pink flowers when it's in spring bloom.

trainspotting.

Slumped on the curb

he stares at ants
congregating near his feet.
They’re curious about
his recent regurgitation
of stomach acids.

I wonder 

what ants would do
with a human degree
of consciousness.

I think
(hope) they would do
something other than
numbing it away with
alcohol and television.

I don't know why
it's so painful
to be conscious,
but I'd like to think
it's worth it.

naiad.

The Moon, lithe naiad

shining a smile for the night,

adrift with grains of fainter light.

She floats and waits, a lily pad

in an inverse sea of stars.

But her smile is a shadow,

and her light – sad reflections

of a far-off sphere;

a waxing, waning, white veneer.

roadside creatures.

entwined.

same ocean, different shore

I don’t want to write

about love anymore

each stanza a painful pleonasm

of how much I miss you

I'd swim the gulf

just to fall asleep once more

together, with knotted limbs

inhaling gentle breaths,

exhaling gentle snores

but for now, at least

I’ll answer midnight calls

half asleep, spewing slurs

across five hundred thirty-three miles

but entwined in futures

love is a star

a commonplace luminescence

in the milky way, and across the universe
born in a bewildering brilliance
and leaves in a supernova hearse

each spin tales of traveling light
that go on after death
and inscribe countless skies with diamonds

love is a star

Suwannee River FL. & St. Louis MO.

"Bob"

Pontederia cordata leaf; inflorescence is below

 The following pictures were taken in St. Louis' Forest Park and Zoo. Both are beautiful places. 

translate.

pink epithelial tissue
convex, subtly grooved
(and soft, so soft!)
the set of two converge
and reach to meet another’s.

tissues collide, yield, meld
for a few perfect seconds
until the pairs depart,
the custom completed
the message delivered.

neurons fire elsewhere
and translate to english
from the language of smooch
and it reads: “I love you”

flowers & doodles

Wait for the 3 minute mark, it's worth it :)

Passiflora incarnata 

"I love you"

quail

{detail}

Ocala National Forest

Ceratiola ericoides 

(Florida rosemary)

night on the sun.

soft lips sit--

a patient smile
makes them smaller
than those that open wide
to shout some stream of babble…
speaking to fill any awkward silence.
or perhaps they thirst speech to such extents
as to have no honest prerequisites of their partners.

but strong voices cannot be contained for long

and, oh, how I crave your conversation!
fingers and gestures, too, can be nice,
but sign language is no substitute
for those who say ‘I love you’;
a phrase with importance
perhaps only when
imparted betwixt
two pairs of
willing lips

ceiling fan.

listless and dreamy, I lie
and stare up at my fan
spinning endless circles
against a popcorn ceiling sky
a perpetual motion machine

lulling me to daydreams
of your sweet, sweet smile
I close my eyes

so I can get lost
in yours for a while
each pupil; a universe
deep and star-filled
I drink in the memory
of your warm presence,
a lovely potpourri
of kisses and sneeches
oh! can I just say,
I missed you today?

more mush...

we exchanged
and embraced
each of our fears
summoning tears
no reason in midst
behold:
we irrational scientists

but that’s love, I suppose
and, oh, Darwin knows
no reason resides
in ardent romance;
what a blindfolded dance!

so I’ll stick to my plants
and you to your genes
and we’ll leave love
to centrifuge elsewhere
in those subjective machines
we call hearts

and perhaps
they, too, can be smart
but just in case
my dear clock face
I'll tell you anew:
I love you, I love you
I love: you






peace.
-lise. 

shaking & trembling.

maybe.

I searched the dictionary
and the thesaurus
on the internet
I thought I had the paper ones
in my room
or something, somewhere
I swear

I was searching for a word
any word
I wanted something tangible
to tell you how I felt
or at least more tangible
than constellations of pixels
on my computer screen
and the spaces in between

I just wanted a word
one word
(how silly; absurd!)
I just wanted one
perfect, luculent word
as a canvas for art;
as a sleeve for my heart

I wanted a word
And sure, I found plenty
I suppose they were okay
but none of them were that word
the word I was looking for
I couldn’t search anymore

Then I remembered your face,
your smile, your laugh
and I laughed, and I smiled
because I realized right then
maybe the word I was thinking of
maybe, maybe it was love

optimist.

Hello all! Sorry for my extended absence, but I have returned at last. Here's a buffet of words, pictures, and music to make it up to you!

"Antonio"


oh!
those chatoyant eyes
a perfect pair
of shining spools

a naïve magpie
I am entranced
by the luster
of their silken wisdom

what an instant
ensnarement,
spun and tangled
into those – oh!
those chatoyant eyes

peace.
-lise.