Bay Watch

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Bay Watch
 By John R. Greenwood

On quiet day and sun-filled edge

morning gull waits patient and warm

bird ear listening close to trolling sounds 
that pass in blue distance 

in time too 
her turn will come

taken to flight 
and when ready 

she too will pass 
forth and back
fishing 
for something 
below

deep 
in ocean 
depth

"Battenkill Books"

Battenkill Books

by John Greenwood

Enter the doors to a world inside

Where words of wisdom and learning reside

Stories of courage maybe a tale of woe

A place to meet friends, like Jenna or Joe  

Children are welcome

Mom's are too

Dad need a gift? 

We can fix that for you

So head off to Cambridge 

Park the car on the street

The warmth in this place

Is honest and sweet 

Books by the front door

Books on a rack

Buy one book on Monday

By Sunday you're back

"Porch Peace"

Porch Peace

By John R.Greenwood

Each porch step up

A story to tell

Of lives and loves from

The world that surrounds

Friends stop by and whisper

Did you know? Did you hear?

Porch simple moments

Unchanged through the years

The neighbor's new Chevy

A lost wallet is found

An upcoming wedding

The old barn that burned down

Boys perched on railings

Swinging their feet

Dad hikes up his work pants

That droop in the heat

On the paint worn top step

Giggling girls squished together

As if joined at the hip

Like birds of a feather

Women in blue dresses

Red petunias in clay pots

Babies in playpens

Sleeping or not

Visions of porches

Today or yet to be

Provide a little haven

That's safe for you and me

I wrote this poem for "Porch Pieces" - Artist Bryony Graham's living sculpture.

J.R.G.9.11.10

When The Gutters Need Cleaning

"Smile, I did."
When The Gutters Need Cleaning

By John R. Greenwood

life can get away from you 

cluttered garages, car-less and sad

attic stuffiness overgrown with plastic totes and Christmas bulbs

time passes quickly when work is followed by work

a man challenged to thin a worn-torn pair of anything

drawers of junk

shelves of drawers 

life goes on 

sorted or not

When the gutter's need cleaning

          grab the camera…

* Author's Note: No these are not my gutters. I found these rolling hills of green while traveling the Green Mountain State. They made me smile -- then I thought of my to-do-list. The list is long. 

My online interview with Poets United and Sherry Blue Sky

"The Interview" 

"Hoop Dreams"

Hoop Dreams

by John Greenwood

Hours spent shooting

dreams and baskets 

years past have collected

the game clock ticks

one shot

one second left

the shot is up 

     it's
       ?