we know to only use our nose with a rose   and pick hidden blackberries with pinpoint stealth   never climb an acacia tree, that will bloody any day   oh, and cactus, the painful lesson of sloppiness that’s erased   after pulling out the needles and having too much of a good laugh

I cut a cold, shaded corner to reach the sun   the soft warm press of light on my face, brakes the feet I draw an oval breath   the whole walk, I’ll bear the hidden sun to embrace the revealed one up ahead   if pleasure chose a time to play hide and seek, it would be an October walk

remember the student with strange hair, weird hitch in their walk, clothes of their own design, who lived on an island off the coast of normal, the one laughed at, if not too their face, then behind it?   ironically, some made a living becoming characters on TV, in movies and commercials and still get laughs, though the come with a paycheck   they’ve proven an odd character can be profitable with bravery, luck and a good booking agent   I just hope in making a career of flaun