The Saturn Poem and another

Saturn

I sit on the interstellar

ring of Saturn and stare

at revolving hugeness

a turn strong and timed

And all the things of this life

seemed to turn slowly

with Saturn

and I, staring from this

mid-halo of ice

Uncold, quiet

a blackness, no despair

these girls and family members

these back pains and weakening knees

these elections and news and

these irritable mornings and fleeting nights

these visits to the hospital, each sterile room

these soggy papers below these text-reflecting eyes

and formaldehyde reminders...

Saturn kept turning

Strong and timed

I sat and stared from solid water

and the ring, and I, 

turned too

My Obit

What if my obit mentioned

The time I cheated on my wife

And not just the number of

My sperm that found home?

What if my tombstone told of

How I hadn’t been a brother

or a son to my mother for 9, 10 years?

I read more unwritten than written

I and you, we’re slow to trust

Our depths to you

I have no fun

In shallow waters

(I’ve long outgrown the kiddie pool)

Let’s dive deep into the dirt

Of our graves, dance with

Our skeletons, give it away

While we’re still free.