This poem is written by my poet friend Selma Benjamin. She is 101 years old. She has been through the holocaust. She is gentle, kind, and very wise. Here is one out of her hundreds of poems that she has given me permission to print. Here goes: 2020 BLUES Crazy plague from unknown sourceMakes usContinue reading “2020 BLUES”
Tag Archives: poetry
this is…
this is my hoodwhere concrete meets the skyneon lights twinklehumanity in your faceborn here, loved here, die here I was born in East L.A., Boyle Heights, CA USA in the Japanese American Hospital, May 15, 1948. Racists in America often refused to care or treat Japanese Americans, so we built our own hospital in BoyleContinue reading “this is…”
above the earth
afraid of heightsI love to fly in my dreamsfar awayabove the eartheverything is clear Genie Nakano
Turning blue
Patience is the antidote to anger…counting my breath…as I turn blue.
Green light
Yellow lightshave turned to greenuncross your fingersuncross your legsthe clock is ticking to our pulse. On your feet open the window shades Look Listen next moment tell me more… Genie Nakano, 5 /20/2020
A Puzzle
a puzzlewe must put togetherCovid-19
A Floating World…poetic history of tanka
genie Nakano Before Japan could read or write, tanka was called waka performed as short songs in five lines short long short long long Heian imperial court was well versed in waka after a love affair erotic exchanges of waka was expected proper etiquette Women were the best of tanka’s golden era yearning, soaring talesContinue reading “A Floating World…poetic history of tanka”
Meditation#7 Humbling Down
once I watched an ant crawling the mountains bottom it started to run half its legs on the ground in an alternating tripod gait with quantum steps my eyes followed mind took me to the summit there I wanted to be but wind blew me away down the other side breathing in breathing out IContinue reading “Meditation#7 Humbling Down”
further farther beyond
Further, Farther and Beyond bright eyes lashes fluttering into mine time to play she says– wake up no, you cannot sleep on puffy pillows we pretend to eat a feast savory and sweet calorie free for me eat it all and then plastic fruit knives, forks and spoons dish up colorful makeContinue reading “further farther beyond”
Soshite (Complete)
I am writing because the blog lost the last five stanzas–sorry… Soshite Cold outside fingers cramp and freeze my age is showing like a fallen slip so… slap on the blush gloss the lips piggy bank more time I’m not ready for elderhood my heart is still a child my body is merely disobedient so…Continue reading “Soshite (Complete)”
Genie Nakano 