Christmas

dad's phone in hand
the little boy eagerly watches
the Santa Tracker

first Christmas
away from home—
a new family

Santa Tracker—
watching as his sleigh
flies over Chile

looking around:
new country, new friends,
Merry Christmas

smiles shine
all over the world
under a new Christmas tree

crossing borders for hopeful futures
there is no star
to guide us

department store windows
paint the Christmas I want
but can't afford

day after Thanksgiving
I hang the julebukk ornament
on the tree

four types of potato
for the Christmas buffet
an Irish tradition

Christmas eve moon
it even glows
where snow never falls

under the mistletoe
that first kiss
an unspoken promise

bitter chill
the kitchen is warm—
baking lefse

snowed in
Christmas with family
all that's needed today

Christmas break
the bronze man dons
a tinsel scarf

holiday season
strangers smile
at each other

warm fire
eggnog and smiles
fill the living room

Christmas cheer
fills the dining-room—
no room for Grinch here

snow whispers as it
descends from the sky
a new swaddling blanket

Christmas Eve
we huddle around
"A Christmas Story"

last guest leaves
last cup of coffee
with dad

shuffling
to give grandma
the biggest gift

stone nativites
gifts in front of baby Jesus
in place of a Christmas tree

9 carrots
treats
for Santa’s reindeer

one less stocking
than last
year

a tower of desserts
wobble on my plate
cookie party

I arrive at the cookie party
winter chill
vanishes

the bells ring
in the distance
family gathers

silent night
the world stands still—
a cry from the manger

grandma opens the door
I'm greeted
by the smell of pie

wooden stables
the new king shines
under a northern star

christmas tree lit
white snow falls
behind the new piano

Christmas tree
in the UC Lobby
smiling a little brighter that day

kids basement
playing with toys
and drinking beer

Winter Break around the corner
humming "Jingle Bells"
through the hallways

away from home
deck the halls
of the dorms

at home texting friends
from college
"merry Christmas"

Karumi

mud caked fingers
washing her hands with
wild violets

skipping through dandelions
hand in hand
like children

baseball mitt
bigger
than his head

the glow of fairy lights
for once
I read a book of my own choice

belly laughs
from the backyard
this won't last forever

my mouth curves
to match the smiley face
the barista drew on my cup

kids costume
i'm a princess
he exclaims

tadpoles swim
a jar dips in
for some

first snow
fighting the temptation
to honk your pom pom hat

Halloween afternoon
walking to class
in a hamburger suit

chapped lips
a perfect canvas
for strawberry lip balm

I walk to class
on my path
the perfect orange leaf

no money for coffee
a good time
for a walk

smeared lipstick
holding hands
we take the night

ah
the grassy plains
my screensaver

ferris wheel
stuck at the top—
not another cycle

yellow petals
in her hair
grandma was pretty

after dinner mints
the highlight
of my date

rain falls and
soaks my jacket—
it'll dry later

passing in the street
I whisper
"bork"

before the day's chaos
sneaking out
to watch the sunrise

the happiest i've ever been
that summer
you and me

neon moonlight
strangers pour out their hearts
to one another

   guitar strings
snap         improvise
           the song

meadow beside the freeway
one blade of grass
taller than the others

crisp white pages
a new
book

on the porch
mums blooming
next to rotting pumpkins

family visit
grandma leaves behind
her homemade cookies

Old Spice
sticking my head in my sweater
to smell my pits

twisting her mother's ring
she quakes and
begins to speak

a quiet place
we talk through the silence
to lighten the mood

fleece tie blanket
from my ex
don’t remember his face

kukai day
scanning the rows
to see if I made it

tango gone short
he spun me
into oblivion

a new place
i never imagined
i'd be a flower girl

conversation
over music
crackling speakers

stuck in traffic
radio station plays
my favorite song

catching another red light
time to think
about my day

wildflowers
growing among
my weeds

early morning
light nudges me
awake

bad day
my dog greets me
at the door

drunk lovers
fall asleep on the porch
the storm passes

the chilling wind
of a fall night
I scoot closer to you

we run to
the horizon
jumping over pumpkins

old favorite song;
so much better
after 3 beers

feeling bold
I ask him to walk
me home

warm autumn sun
I see his eyes
are truly blue

she grabs her coat
the rain
won't stop her today

standing in the
pouring rain
my hair makes perfect
ringlets

no spreadsheets
at dinner
pass the rolls

written love letter
I don't remember her dotting her i's
that way

Sabi

crackling campfire
he puts out the flames
alone

summer solstice
one lonesome frog
calls to the moon

opening my mouth
my voice
lost in the wind

a message
from an old friend
feeling less alone

the boy skips rocks
across grandfather's lake
alone again

all alone
the only noise
the night's breeze

leaving
I almost forget
to bring my sadness

laughing to forget
for a moment
we do

a storm brews up above
one boat
left on the horizon

she walks up the stairs
bringing with her
the cold air

clinging to mom like a koala
please don't leave me
with him

succulent
the only plant
i can keep alive

snow fall despair
we wait too long
to share secrets

another year gone.
just a turn of the
calendar page

frozen chickpeas
my only choice for dinner
this sucks

alone in a big city
passing by locals with
not a word

birthday flowers
now whither
on my shelf

4th outfit change
I don’t even want
to go anymore

a forever home
the wanderer finds
in the moon

in the old toy shop
a porcelain doll perched
on the dusty shelf

a distance
from the little girl's silhouette
the upstairs window

my name?
irrelevant
when they’re around

evening to myself
I settle in
. . . and call my mother

crowded room
full of people
no one to talk to

lipstick kissed palm
matches the shade
of my lips

walk to class alone
making my path
around damp leaves

roommate in bed
doing homework
by fairy light

early morning walk
no one else
around

dancing
for myself
and no one else

yellow ticket
on my dashboard
Monday

empty house
I was hoping
someone would come

closing the blinds
so even the bystanders
can't see

looking on Instagram
I sit and watch
friends having fun

crack of dawn
I make myself
one egg

tear-stained face
I replay
the video

late night panic attack
none of my friends
pick up their phones

Halloween

cop horror stories
my hispanic cousin
lightens the mood

halloween costume
I wish it covered more skin
cold

putting on the face
of someone less broken
end of October

halloween
i wish I was
a ghost

dark hallway
the manor towers over
a graveyard

halloween party
putting on a physical
and emotional
mask

ghost in my room
not
a costume

pile of candy
I binge eat
with my house light off

the doorbell rings
for trick or treaters
my dog escapes

opening night
on the edge of our seats
the blood pours

wiping off whiskers
drinking alone
on halloween

Halloween night
Charlie Brown and his Great Pumpkin
I open another kit-kat

halloween night
afraid of guys
not ghosts

billowing tractor fumes
we sit on square hay bales
for a cruise

scattered in the wind
autumn leaves
and our friendship

one night a year
the mask
comes off

carved pumpkin
the only one
smiling

kissing beneath
paper mache jack-o-lantern
so much better than mistletoes

what’s under
his mask?
he isn’t wearing one.

leaves crack underfoot
the ghost giggles
and toddles up to the door

October breeze
chilling the tears
that run down

halloween night
terrified
that i'm alone

autumn bonfire
the marshmallow melts
off the stick

on my neighbor’s porch
a jack-o-lantern sits
smiling

harvest festival
leaving with
hay in my hair

haunted house
screaming
I punch the clown

costume party
wearing my feelings
tonight