Mike James: Travel Ghazal

for Larry

Give me a wash cloth and I will find a river to

Dip it in.  I will bathe in memory and in loss.

Whenever the sky seems bluer than the river,

Remember, you only swim towards dirt.

I can’t tell you all the places I’ve been.

Memory holds less geography, more loss.

Here’s a wish for a young me…Don’t be so serious…

Swim in the communion cup. Curse in your prayers.

This poem might be less useful than a dirty joke.

There may be less wisdom, fewer good images.

I am afraid of all exit signs. Though I love any abandoned

Factory, house or ghost town. Almost every broken window.

An exit sign offers one way out.  Just like the river.

A broken window might lead to an alley, to another dark room.

Copyright 2018 Mike James