Don't you be ashamed
Of your heart of gold;
If they don't catch it,
It'll break their toes!

Cold: my toes wiggle.
Rainfall: happy redwoods weep.
Fog encroaches yet.

There: now you are here,
but you are warmer inside –
kindled by haiku.   :)

©14Dec2010 @DracoTalpus
for Judith Giganti, who has
never been to California, who
has a huge heart, and who is
otherwise a tiny woman with
a contrary name.  ;)

Aine sits in our big chair,
Her legs stretched out,
Her feet are bare;
I'm counting ten wee toes for her,
Toes I love so dear.

They lead her from the crib to stairs,
Though never far from loving care;
Those ten wee toes we love so dear,
Will take her far,
Will lead her there.

They'll get ***** in the garden
While laughing in the rain;
They'll be her fins
When she swims,
They'll wiggle
When she sings.

They'll tap out eighths and quarters
When she plays her songs;
She'll slip them into runners
For a race to last life-long.

They'll get cold on the rink
When she plays our game;
We'll rub those toes quite vigorously
To warm the ice-cold sting.

They'll fit right into heels and pumps
When she plays her game;
But for me those liddle toes of hers
Will always be the same.

Sitting all day with Dakota, my
sick old dog, cancer, comforted
by touch, my toe rubs her flanks
outside on her little rug
under redwoods, on the deck  
her favorite spot.
Fuzzy ears gather sounds,
rhythm, the day goes round.

Dawn is birdsong, dove and thrush
deer tread softly in the underbrush.

Comes the chatter of people
shouts, children at play
whine of machinery
remarkable the variety of motors
on a Saturday.

Light fades,
the return of birdsong
tap-tap, a neighbor’s wood shop
laughter echoes in the forest
scent of barbecue
summer pleasures.

Now midnight
all is hush
endless stars
Dakota remains at my feet, rubbed
by my toes as I chase away flies.

Patience, little fly.
Feel the breath from her nose?
Still alive while it blows.

They said
We were to tip toe through the tulips
Waltz, glide across the dance floor of life
I haven’t a chance
My size twelve feet and three inch toes
Clatter, batter and splatter
Through life’s brambled, grotty hedgerows
Toes are a magnet, for that rusty nail,
Or any broken pipe left on my trail
Oh what use are my toes,
Now I’m no longer hanging upside
Down from branches
They’ve been broken, twisted,
Stomped on hard
Nails that have cracked,
And bleed some more,
Before being shed.
Now I’ve looked at other’s toes,
And seen what toes could be,
All brightly coloured
Polished to a sheen,
Tended to like beautiful topiary
Maybe that’s what I should have done,
Instead of kicking a ball
Clomping cross those tulips
Spent sometime buffing, making them look clean.
But then I’d look
And miss my battle worn scarred tootsies
They may be old, crooked,
And not quite glamour ****
But then they have walked a million,
And will do for a million more.

i like my mouth when its with yours
the way my lips seem so soft and alive
& how i smile when your mouth presses against mine

i like my hands when they're with yours
intertwined as if they belong there
& how my stubby fingers don't seem all that stubby when they're locked with yours

i like my legs when they're with yours
when we're lying in bed, i can drape mine over yours
& not for a second feel as if they're too heavy or too large

i like my freckles when they're with yours
when our faces are pressed together, they match
& its like a map which leads from my cheeks to yours

i like my nose when its with yours
the way our noses bump ever so lightly
making me smile everytime they do

i like my toes when they're with yours
the way i have to get on my tiptoes to reach you
& the struggle to reach your lips makes them all the more desirable

i like my voice when its with yours
its a sweet melody, the two of us laughing together
makes me wish we'd never stop talking

i like who i am
when i'm with you
because you make me feel
as if i am loved
as if i belong
as if i am cared for
as if i am significant
you make me feel
as if i am someone
in this world
where everyone feels
like a no one

hemmingway was right to say:
*"i like my body when it is with your body"

I can’t feel around, “you,” anymore.
So to, the smiles only happen atop numb.

And I’d call it a, “kind of solace,” in knowing
Tomorrow wouldn’t matter either;

Not quite so much, so long as five, at least five
Of your, “sisters,” remain under ice and in the fridge.

This cure, “acquiesce and amnesia,”
At any given time,
Culls all but one, you –
My wife, and a third year’s scorn.

Nevertheless, I don’t want you to forgive me.
I truly don’t. I only want you to leave,

Pack and make good on your covenant so that this
Swim may end, for my toes should test elsewhere.

Just and walk away. Don’t look back, “please,” “PLEASE!”
Don’t look back so that I may finally look ahead!