HEAVEN LAKE (35) ~

Nothing But The Truth

She is a little girl

on a rocking-horse

and she will only

allow herself to be

lifted on the horse

if she can hold a

flower, it’s plastic

but she is two years

old so it is a flower

and she is content

with the horse her-

self and the flower

until I tell her her

daddy has jumped

into the pond and

her daddy who is

my son is hidden

by me in the door-

way and is quite

used to madcap

and fun but he

knows to reassure

his little girl that he

is not in the pond

but grandfathers

must say there are

such ponds

Still

Snow in the

Yard into the

Woods even in

The trees but

Under simple

Plank swing

A square

Of grass

Always

There are people who will love you

There are people who will hurt you

You can’t get one without the other

Sometimes it will be the same person

Sometimes it will be you

Close your eyes, it still doesn’t go away

See a river and where and how it goes

Go like that

Memory

we

live

long-

er

than

we

will

live

The Little Things

The axe

Standing on

The floor in

The corner

Is all said

And done

(conclusion)

________________________

Bob Arnold

Heaven Lake

Longhouse 2018

HEAVEN LAKE ( 34 ) ~

For Ian Hamilton Finlay

______________________________________________________

Hear

oriole by

itself made

the yard

                                            

                         Boy

                                               an airport —

                         on the kitchen table

In

the rain

the geese

                                             Simple

                                                 the canoe

                            does no-

                            thing on

                                          land

___________________

Bob Arnold

Heaven Lake

Longhouse 2018

HEAVEN LAKE ( 33 ) ~

Girl In The Middle

It was all in her eyes

and something about the two ragamuffins

sitting with no food at the table in the corner

watching her — my lover and I have come into

the diner from the back door, place about empty

her eyes said — square on us both — I’m ready for you

we smiled, said hello then ordered two salads

with grilled chicken

and one large Coke

plus a large fries

and if she would

please serve the fries

the way they look in the photograph

on the wall behind her

her eyes darted, very cat

she purred, “oh wouldn’t it be

something if we could be served

food the way it looked in the pictures.”

now I really liked her

the two ragamuffins seemed to be listening

I liked her because she reminded me of my

lover who is capable of saying the very same thing

and because of that solvency it all worked out splendidly

she went and served up the fries precisely as they

looked in the picture and I told her she has

now proven it can be done

she may have curtsied

in one of those stupid uniforms

looking on fire 

while the rest of the staff, I’m sorry

looked-on like dopes

we were midway done with our meal

out in the truck cab

when she left with the two ragamuffins 

4 o’clock shift over

big truck

loud truck

two guys and this girl in the middle

big snowplow lifted driving fast

Stone Over Stone

to bal

ance

the

stone

takes

eye

&

hand

& for

get

ting

thought

All

There is 

nothing 

greater 

than a 

greatness 

that 

comes 

not at 

all

________________________

Bob Arnold

Heaven Lake

Longhouse 2018

HEAVEN LAKE ( 32 ) ~

photo ~ Jerome Delay

Sick Days

Middle of winter

I knock a bug to the carpet —

what is a bug doing here at

my lamp this time of year?

for the longest time

I have been watching it slow-

ly upright itself on the

heavy weave of carpet as

if it were me —

I can’t stop watching

A Moment In The West

Fairly pretty

In a pale violet

Long skirt, white

Blouse, black hair

Sells me one very blue

Iris from a thick

Bunch in a plastic

Pail, wraps it with paper

And blue string

Then smiles at

Susan who I

Hand it to —

Who takes me

Out and shows

Me more of

Santa Barbara

Our Life

You

&

me

&

then

some

You

The woodpile I stacked in the woods

Is precisely as I left it one month ago

Where I dropped the cherry tree

Bucked it up, split it, stacked it

It was left to the sun, rain, gloom

Harmless showers, longer nights

And if I’m a nice guy

I’ll cover the woodpile

Before it snows

It’s all up to me

___________________

Bob Arnold

Heaven Lake

Longhouse 2018