Lately I’ve had a feeling

I owe Florida

an apology full of flowers

Specifically Orlando

Where I took my first breath

Otown and I have been long friends

Though I’ll admit,

I haven’t always appreciated this

26 year friendship with my hometown,

“Boring”

According to visitors from other states

Or natives that have felt tethered

Just like me

But Orlando thrives on local

Connections,

Between those who share

This slice of sunshine as

Home

Now I see it

The community is big

The buzz is little

It’s the little things that matter most

And you can find these moments in

…

One year ago I tossed and turned

on the night of October 21,

As I recalled all the memories

Of my grandmother’s life.

She could cut a mango

with her eyes closed.

Four feet of love,

Marleny Salazar

Loved to tell tales

While smoking a Marlboro red.

Like a true,

tiny Colombian lady

She never left the house

Without her high heels,

Make up like Marilyn Monroe,

Nails polished,

And hair ironed.

Once she was kidnapped

From Miami to Tampa

But she wouldn’t let them take her

Without applying lipstick first.

She was the first to teach me

A female’s…

on the same day

i imagine new beginnings

i remember old endings

a tragedy

i watched a crow

steal two eggs from

our Nest

and suddenly there was a split

in the invisible cloak

that protects it

the chickens screamed like

the woman in Psycho

and the eggs cracked to the ground

so i wondered about Death

sometimes things happen

when they’re not supposed to

like a pandemic that shuts down the world

or a car that crashes into another car

some suffer collisions every day

while others sit cozy safe in their bathtubs

on their laptops,

crowing about boredom

…

If I was out in the wild

Existing in a silent battleground field

Chill as chamomile

Facing a predator would make it all real

How fast would I run

When…

Slowing down gives me peace no matter how hard i resist it every day

Stop missing moments by looking back when you should be present

Nostalgia is a drug

Throwing the day away is as easy as letting a paint brush dry out

The sun is out for a short amount of time

The trees wiggle every time a breeze runs through the leaves

Do animals live the same day every day?

Find a simple pleasure that keeps you grounded like watching the chickens play as the sun sets

Love can be as simple as saying hello once in a…