second chances

when

did this ancient wagon

spokes broken
sunk into earth

become a photograph

a landscape

a compliment to nature

instead of a piece of
farm equipment hauling hay
field rocks
burlap bags of rye
seeds of survival

why

was it put out to pasture

to carry only stories

the burden of its history
with no wheels

without words

until now

Barry DeCarli

January 25 & February 26, 2016

On Hammond Pond

©Barry DeCarli

crazing

don’t be afraid
to become more
radical
more misunderstood
to show your underside
that reveals some crazing
a rough side
an uncultured comment
a quirky edge

but prepare
to be estranged
for lesser infractions
shunned after some cruel unmasking
as others serve up
their own emotional bankruptcy

to counter your revelation
your imperfection

their fear...

Barry DeCarli
February 18-19, 2016
On Hammond Pond
©Barry DeCarli
http//www.italyiswaitingforyou-getgoing.com/

fire on ice

from an unyielding sky

her resolute race west paused

here

her fire dances across

the melting ice

her glimmering flames

more than illusion

splash nothing but cold light

flickering  against this wet veneer

beckoning evening

her light lay puddled

in momentary reflection

reckoning this day with twilight

Barry DeCarli

On Hammond Pond

Goshen, MA

February 3-4, 2016

©Barry DeCarli

hunger pangs

sometimes

we get a taste

of tomorrow

a tease on the tongue

but we are afraid

to bite into it

to swallow

to savor something

before it’s served

other times

the flavor of yesterday

remains

long past its ripeness

when we should know

to spit it out

and move on

but most times

we drink in the tasteless

moments of today

washing down

our hope for the future

while the dreams we harbor

still linger on our lips

Barry DeCarli

January  22, 2016

On Hammond Pond

©Barry DeCarli

mourning

maybe when someone dies

a new black hole opens

somewhere

in the universe

a place where the soul

can find respite in its great journey forward

beyond our understanding

out of sight of our grief

leaving behind the sounds of our sorrow

but what of our private tears

the sorrow  we do not share

at an afternoon vigil

or at a grave site

as we mourn strangers

as those we knew

what of the sobs no one hears

who can fathom their meaning

does a black hole open

to accept those too

Barry DeCarli

January 27, 2012

On Hammond Pond

Copyright 2012 Barry DeCarli

unfinished

this mosaic gives us history

even the pieces unfitted

obscuring the margins

will find their

place

this tapestry razored

and assembled

then shuffled and boxed

bought, brought home and spread out

across a table

the answers still hidden

how much time

to piece a life

back

together

to match the edges

of pain

with those of joy

how to balance all meaning

from fact and lie

with hopes and dreams

the weight of memories

what to do with the pieces

that

  just

won’t

   fit

Barry DeCarli

Began in 2010, Ferrisburgh, VT

“finished” December 22, 2014

well, finished again December 18, 2015

On Hammond Pond, Goshen, MA

so close

how far is a stranger

from the center of your soul

the width of the universe

the depth of an ocean

or just the distance between two people

caught in a glance

how close is a friend

if they cross paths

can they know

will they wonder

will they miss that soul-meeting moment

and stay separate

worlds apart

without ever knowing

how close they were…

Barry DeCarli

November 22, 2015

On an Aer Lingus flight from Milan to Dublin

Draft #2

©2015 Barry DeCarli