Saturday Market

At the market
we line up
for kale.
Dark green leaves
and yellow flowers.
Coffee dripped blue
and cream in bottles.
Dogs on leashes and babies running loose.
The sun on our backs
and frost in our mouths.
My fingers numb with the morning.
Here, the Asian women watch you
to see how many samples of pear you’ve eaten,
then shake their heads when you do not buy.
Parking is difficult
and the maids are always out with pen in hand
ready to ticket.
On the corner a man plays a milk crate
and broken guitar
hoping for change.

Turning Wild

I am starting to turn wild.
The way yams grow from the ground,
curved and bent and careless.
The way blackberries race across the vines
in Summer.
The way lions roar
and dogs howl.
The way night rolls in against the fog
without apologizing.
I am starting to turn wild.
I do not care so much what I say or don’t say.
Who I help or don’t help.
Who I fix or leave broken.
Here,
in my cave,
with the rain coming down
and the tarp uncovered letting in light,
I am starting to turn wild.
I can feel it in my blood.
In my eyes.
In the curve of my fingers and in the flare of my nostrils.
In the heat of my breath,
and the point of my tongue.
In the folds of my lips
and in between my legs.
It is coming.
I have tasted it now.
Like raw honey.
Thick and sweet.
I am starting to turn wild.