Excerpts from "Pearls Beneath the Rind"


Excerpts from “Pearls Beneath the Rind” (Available at Amazon or through Richard Seldin)

From Richard Seldin

 
It Was A Point Of Light

that couldn’t be denied;
growing, as slowly as my age,
or had been there all along, unseen.

It was nonchalant, effortless,
as spontaneous as space,
as radiant as radiant is.

Just a small point, mind you, and
best unadorned
by poetic abstractions;
yet, still it was there,
illumining my being.


 A Night’s Spark

Tonight I want to ride the rail
full speed on,
breathe in corn and honeysuckle.
Tonight I want to woof up slopes, straddle eaves
and delight in the bread of it.
Like a holy place at dawn and empty—
all mine to do with.

To tell a tale pungent
as a Cuban stogie,
a louche singles bar;
that would be a rage no matter the age.

Yet after all the years of inner sleuthing—
the messenger now snoring in my ear—
even when aloft
I can’t hold it.
This red shifting spark
already fraying beyond the edge.

From Carole R Seldin-Bolinski

Skin Deep
If you opened my skin
there’d be sediments
from past loves,
a time when skin was smooth
eyes alert and wanting.

If you opened my skin
you’d find oil and acrylic paint,
charcoal and my favorite 4B
drawing pencils.
An apple for still lifes,
an imagination for everything else.

There’d be an assortment of riches,
debris that needed cleaning,
and a cobweb as thick
as night to hold them in,
if you opened my skin.


Changing Seasons
Sit upon the hill with me.
Hear the cool sounds of fall
sweep across our cheeks.
Soon winter will push in,
frost our skin crimson
like the turning leaves.

Sit upon the hill with me.
Wonder at the iridescence of
a spider’s web,
a soft glow
in a delicate sun.
Listen to the cicadas
their songs now staccato,
desperate for an end-of-season mate.

Sit upon the hill with me.
But don’t tell me
the dog refused to eat,
your leg hurts,
or you need to buy coffee.

Tell me you care.
Tell me you had cared.
Tell me you will always care.
And if you can’t tell me
these things, then

Sit upon the hill with me
one last time.




1 comment:

  1. Hi Richard,

    This is Sam, your old friend but not contacted very often. We met in TeaForSoul Spring Festival gathering recently. I am writing to see if I can publish some of your poems, writing in Chinese in 问道杂志 WENDAOJOURNAL: http://wendao.elementigroup.com/? You may contact me at sam_s_liu@yahoo.com. Hope to see you on 書友會 ” Below the Line in Beijing”.

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