What Do I Want?

—Poetry by James Lee Jobe, Davis, CA
—Public Domain Photos Courtesy of James Lee Jobe

It was Spring when Pos Moua climbed the Karst Mountains, and the earth below bloomed as he climbed.
              ~ for Pos Moua, 1969-2020 ~
 
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A summer day in the Sacramento Valley; the trout is thirsty, and the red-tail hawk craves a breath of fresh air. I am a simple human; what do I want?

Hundreds die everyday. Everyday. COVID-19. The wave of grief that is building up will soon become a tsunami. To wash us all away. Tears like a raging ocean. And now? It’s afternoon and a frail sun breaks through the heavy clouds.

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A sunrise, a soft light in the distance, in the east. Is it whispering my name? A sorrow without a name grows with the strength of the new sun. O Life, you’re so beautiful, and yet so wild. 

 

 

He tells me, “I don’t know who I am,” and I want to grab him and shake him. Or perhaps shake the parents who somehow failed to teach him. But I don’t. I just tell him the truth.

“You are the mountains that spring up when continental plates shift. You are the eternal oasis, cool and clean, in that desert with no beginning or end. You are the river when the snow melts, the mountain lark that flew down to the valley and didn’t bother to explain why, that first bit of blue sky after a wild storm. And also this, you are the wild storm.”

I do not know if my words struck home, I am older now, my beard is growing white, and I refuse to hide the truth.

Today’s LittleNip:

The sound of the tide against the boulders of the shore; may we all know peace, may we all know compassion.

—James Lee Jobe

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Our thanks to James Lee Jobe for today’s fine poetry and photos! About Pos Moua, James writes: “Hmong poet Pos Moua became a friend [of mine] that last year of his life. He faced his cancer with courage and dignity. I admire him as a man and as a poet. His book, Karst Mountains Will Bloom, is a treasure, and can be ordered easily through Amazon (www.amazon.com/Karst-Mountains-Will-Bloom-Collected/dp/0997504021). Karst, by the way, is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves.” Thanks for this information, James, and our regrets for the passing Pos Moua. An interview with him from 2019 may be read at www.thenormalschool.com/blog/2019/5/23/the-normal-school-interview-with-pos-moua-by-yia-lee-to-live-in-poetry-is-to-be-honest/.

Here’s a reminder that James’ weekly video poetry readings continue, posted before 7:30 pm each Friday at www.youtube.com/jamesleejobe & james-lee-jobe.blogspot.com/. And here’s a Facebook link which will carry you to some Bay Area virtual readings: www.facebook.com/events/859923087865753/, including James Cagney and devorah major this Sunday at 3pm (www.facebook.com/events/301549787790989). The quarantine has opened the world of poetry to all of us via online readings—there are too many for me to keep up with, other than local ones—that’s up to you—but ZOOM around—see the world, safe from the virus!

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—Medusa, trying to watch out for those open badger holes . . .

 Pos Moua

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Ophidiophilia