Selected Poems

Selected Poems by Larry J. Eriksson On Poems and Lighthouses The lighthouse is dark – awaiting nightfall and those who will need its light. The poem is silent – awaiting a reader who will bring it to life. Second Edition Other publications by Larry J. Eriksson Poetry Chapbooks (poems in this collection) Moonlight (2010) - 6 poems Moments (2011) - 4 poems Mysteries (2011) Music (2011; 2nd ed. 2013; 3rd ed. 2016) - 3 poems MindGames (2012) - 6 poems Marching (2012; 2nd ed. 2013; 3rd ed. 2016) - 4 poems Memories (2013) - 5 poems MoodSwings (2014) - 6 poems Moving (2015) - 4 poems Magic (2016) - 1 poem Poetry Collections Collected Chapbooks (2016) Word Waves (2016) Nonfiction books Business Decisions (2002) Broken Strings, Missing Notes (2005) Waves of Silence (2015) Free downloads are available at: www.quartersectionpress.com Quarter Section Press 6105 Fairfax Lane Madison, WI 53718-8262 U.S.A. 608.222.1815 Copyright © 2016 by Larry J. Eriksson All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Contents On Poems and Lighthouses cover a bit of humor Buy Local 1 Rocky Tees Golf Course 22 Why I Don’t Play on sound and light... Golf Anymore? 23 String Theory 2 Magical Sunrise 3 on justice... Light Music 4 Feeding the Birds 24 What is Justice? 25 on travel... The Road to Havre 5 a bit of politics... Deerfield Diorama 6 Middle Ground 26 Chip Seal Nation 27 on alleys... On Wisconsin? 28 Nosing Around the Alley 7 Life on the Alley 8 on waging peace... The Tool Shop 9 The Wars Never Fought 29 Marching Strings 30 up north... At a Northwoods Grill 10 on the passage of time... Family Reunion 11 Special Collections 31 The Namekagon Crossroads 12 The Bus Stop 32 Sounds From the Past 13 Advice From a Grandfather 33 Night Ride 34 on love and marriage... The Last Sounds of Summer 35 Moonlight on the Goldenrod 14 The End of Time 36 Marital Alchemy 15 postscript... on changes... Canine Therapy 37 Vernal Bonfire 16 Dusk in Summer 17 about the author back Godparent to a Butterfly 18-19 Natural Treasure back on the environment... Living With Richard Parker 20 Earth Day Headlines 21 Buy Local Sustainable growth, support your community – read local poets. on sound and light... String Theory a dark quiet night the violin is silent patiently waiting the bow awakens slowly moving back and forth the music begins soon going faster the bow moves from string to string in clouds of rosin a blue glow appears as ions accumulate and the music builds now sparks are flying rivers of color and light a cascade of stars the night disappears lightning arcs across the sky filling the ether energy from strings creating light from darkness as the bow moves on sound and light spring forth pushing the edge of the void expanding the world (published in Broken Strings, Missing Notes, Quarter Section Press, 2005, and the Peninsula Pulse, Sept. 5, 2008; “string theory” also uses vibrating strings to describe the nature of matter; from chapbooks Moonlight and Music, 3rd ed.) 2 Magical Sunrise Soft pre-dawn light fills the air, white snow sparkles on the ground, two contrails rise in the east, arrows flying high above with tails of feathery swirls. A luminous crescent moon dazzles in the pale blue sky, a soft pink hue paints the trees, a low line of clouds blazes with glowing yellows and golds. Signs of the still hidden sun whose sudden rising proclaims the start of another day and abruptly erases the sweet subtlety of light. (revised version of poem from chapbook MindGames) 3 Light Music A treble clef statue of polished green glass, infused by sunshine from a clear blue sky makes the room sparkle with the music of light, shimmering notes performed pizzicato, accompanied by the spectral colors of small rainbows formed by its prismatic base. (inspired by the room where I often write; published in the WFOP 2016 Poets’ Calendar; from chapbooks Moving and Music, 3rd ed.) 4 on travel... The Road to Havre Sailing across the high plains Just a few small towns remain, on the lifeline U.S. 2, islands in a sea of grass. a lone ribbon of concrete The co-op sells food and gas. alongside two rails of steel. We take a small, wooden booth. No interstate, no fast food, Children laugh in the corner. just old abandoned homesteads, A young couple talk nearby. endless fields of wheat and hay, Workers crowd a large table. rugged hills and lonely trees. Soldiers stand in the hallway. A tough land of wild extremes, We relax and watch until big skies and far horizons, a tired waitress brings our food. winter cold and drifting snow, The young man and woman leave summer heat and endless winds. for a high school football game. The odor of burning wood, After drinking our coffee, evidence of distant fires. we leave, return to our car, Dusty haze filling the air and follow the setting sun as sunsets glow red and orange. on the long road to Havre. >>> (inspired by a stop at a cafe in Malta, Montana; from chapbook Moonlight) 5 Deerfield Diorama A rest stop on the Glacial Drumlin Trail, the hot summer sun bakes the gas station. A bicycle leans against a brick wall; the rider relaxes with a cold drink. A riding mower pulls in from Main Street stopping in front of a white FedEx truck. A John Deere garden tractor soon follows parking near a Pontiac Bonneville. A Salvation Army truck with raised hood, three men study the engine compartment. A stream of coolant drips onto the ground. One of the men returns with a hose clamp. The diorama slowly dissolves as the riding mower retraces its route north and the garden tractor drives south on Main – the cyclist fades to a vanishing dot. (published in the 2011 Poets’ Calendar of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets; from chapbook Moments) 6 on alleys... Nosing Around the Alley The sweet perfume of lilacs and the earthy fragrance of gardens mulched with grass clippings. The pungent stench of garbage, the noxious smell of decay, the fetor of dead critters. The familiar essence of oil and gasoline fumes in musty old garages. The aromas of dinners drifting through the neighborhood as the day comes to an end. (published in the 2012 Poets’ Calendar of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets; from chapbook MindGames) 7 Life on the Alley I still remember life on the alley, running and playing full court basketball between backboards on facing garages, watching our neighbors weeding their gardens and washing their cars, playing hide and seek in the evening among the fireflies, but more than all these, I see the garage where my dad started the tool and die shop that supported our family. (from chapbook Moments) 8 The Tool Shop Awake with the rising Sun, dress, eat fast, off to the shop, an aging well-worn building, concrete block walls, few windows, met by the pungent odors of oil, metal, and machines, must punch in at the time clock, at seven, the work begins. Harsh noises, lurking dangers, showers of machine shavings, flashing razor sharp metal, hazardous carcinogens, thuds from pounding punch presses, hard and often boring work, endless sweeping and cleaning, finally it’s time for lunch. The big machines go silent, workers sit at their benches, open metal lunch boxes, eat a baloney sandwich and read the morning paper, a few listen to the news or discuss last night’s ball game, all too soon, it’s back to work. Then the highlight of my day, driving the old pick-up truck cross town to a customer, a chance to briefly escape the dull routine of the shop, a welcome breath of fresh air, had done it a hundred times – but this time, I would not return. (from chapbook Moving) 9 up north... At a Northwoods Grill Relaxing at the end of a long day on an inviting flagstone patio, golden sunlight filtering through the trees. An older couple eating by themselves, just like their first date fifty years ago, chat about their children and grandchildren. A young man and woman playing ping-pong, volleying in a slow, polite fashion, smile at each other when she scores a point. A child enjoying a slice of pizza, watching the people eating and playing, surveys the world she soon will inherit. (inspired by a dinner in Door County, Wisconsin; also published in the chapbook, What Is Hidden, vol. IV, Dickinson Poetry Series, 2013; from chapbook Moments) 10 Family Reunion A weathered olive tackle box, an old gift from my grandfather, filled with smells and tools of fishing, fish line, bobbers, colorful lures. Pinkies my brother and I used to spin cast for crappies, a chrome-plated Swedish spoon that my dad crafted himself, a deep-diving River Runt added by my grandfather, a Hula Popper purchased soon after my father died. An old box filled with fishing lures; a time capsule that still evokes fading memories of the past and of those no longer with us. (from chapbook Memories; published in the 2013 Poets’ Calendar of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets; featured in the exhibition “The Artists Muse, Wisconsin Artists - Wisconsin Poets” at the Howard Young Art Gallery in Woodruff, Wisconsin, Spring, 2014) 11 The Namekagon Crossroads At the extreme west end For years, a key portage of Windigo Lake and on a valued route, but a few miles from Hayward, now almost forgotten; is a long, narrow bay, today, speeding cars cross where my grandparents owned its path without pausing – a resort for many years – moving too fast to hear for some, Simonson’s Bay, the echoes of early but Eriksson’s for me, traders and voyageurs after my grandparents.

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