Hazy Days of June
Thorazine in my veins
Involuntary shaking
Hazy memory of summer spent
dodging bully pulpit pistols
Dizzy falling rains
Daymare into night
My skin pulled taught across my bones
Burnt embers of fires burn blue blooming
Amber glass from root beer bottles
Hummingbirds syrup dance delight!
Moonflowers welcome Monarchs under full moons
Then Tripping on welcome mats of strangers
Seeking an open heart
Gather round us—the us of being beauty
Turkey Vultures mirror my dark eyes
I fall into the river
No stones in my pockets, Virginia
My threadbare tee and thrift store linen shirts
Float, sweet wild Jasmine!
Float and feel
Hot sun burns my brown body
I welcome her
The waters break into currents of melody
Mercury rising
Iced tea sweet with Vietnamese mint
Honey on my lips
Between the wild and gentle is a chasm wise, wide enough to hold me—us—the all of universe kind, generous and chaotically drawn
on maps of Papyrus
All dreaming under sweltering skies
The sea calls me still
Spin, Dervish, spin!
Constellations, I stepped into your June and felt the air thicken, dream-heavy, breath by breath. Each image opened a door—amber glass, trembling veins, root beer memories catching light. You offered a map of days that didn’t pass, they pressed in. Still, you let jasmine float.
The way you name the body—tight across bone, sun-warmed, river-washed—carries a kind of clarity that stays. I felt every line in my own skin, the way some truths hum low and steady beneath everything else.
Your language moves like music rising through grief, rhythm woven from ache and beauty. Gather round us—the us of being beauty gave me pause in the best way. It invites presence. It holds what words rarely do.
The river carries you, and you carry the poem. Fully. Fiercely. Wisely. Everything belongs here—every bloom, every shadow, every drop of sweet mint tea under sweltering sky.
Take care of yourself please and let Laura, your hounds, family take care of you. You are worth it. Love xoxo Jay
I sense a lot of pain that you spin into words of beauty and hope in a sea of despond. May hope be the winner in your life.