I keep glancing at my watch

A trip to Mars is just around the corner,

We’re getting ready to launch any day now.

The massive rockets await the final order,

indifferent folks are about to be wowed.

We’re getting ready to launch any day now,

Technicians making last-minute preparations;

Indifferent folks are about to be wowed,

human voyagers prepare for long separations.

Technicians making last-minute preparations,

The launch window will be opening soon;

Human voyagers are prepared for long separations,

Big Falcon rockets thrust will make people swoon.

The launch window will be opening soon,

dreams of a new world beckon humanity;

Mighty rocket exhaust will make visitors swoon,

Colonizers will build habitats with audacity.

Dreams of a new world beckon humanity,

after a mountain of difficulties overcome;

Colonizers plan underground cities with audacity,

Many years after we thought it would get done.

A mountain of difficulties finally overcome,

The massive rockets given a final order;

Many years after we thought it would get done,

a trip to Mars is just around the corner.

(modified Pantoum)

The Art of Citying

On the river loop at night, adventures awaited.

So many memories were made, innocence lost.

The places stories were made in this city are unique,

hold a special charm that no other place can.

So many parks to make love or mischief in,

so many spots to learn a life lesson – or

teach one to some pupil,

whether they request it or not.

Fishing spots galore – hiking trails too;

Public plazas, recently re-constructed,

Joy for younger and older alike.

Just big enough to hold some gleam and some dirt;

whichever you are into, you can probably find it.

Churches are numerous here, by the way.

Old stories tend to float in the cyber-air,

I remember when…

could this happen in any other place?

Perhaps, but not in this particular way.

Loop Scoopers' reputations

sprouted, flared and then died

down on Grand or Locust.

Adolescence rounded many turns

on Second ave or 13^th St in days past;

some say it still goes on...

Some of the fights were legendary.

Some who met there stuck together long after.

Colleges and ball teams crystallized,

flourished and then faded away.

A convent was bulldozed to build a shopping center,

then it was named for a WW1 casualty.

A business institute flourished and then got de-instituted;

A north-set college was bulldozed to make room for another strip mall.

Cornfields were flattened, and the first auto drive in

shopping center sprouted, flourished, then slowly withered.

Today a convenience store claims a large chunk of that land.

City big wheels used to go shoot rats over on the south side dump;

Babe was big in boxing, then in the restaurant trade;

The Italians got an early toehold, then a foothold,

then ended up running things around these parts...

But they always knew how to concoct tasty feasts –

they still do.

What a conglomeration of races, purposes, and pursuits!

Des Moines seethed and bubbled, grew up big and tall by 1960…

then receded, withered a bit, and regrouped:

For that big push in the 1990s and beyond, to

reach its current growth surge, thousands more citizens

living, working and congesting the downtown areas

with enthusiasm and energy.

Sure hope this city doesn’t suffer the fate of places like

San Francisco, Denver or Pheonix.

Keep the secret, will you?

Small enough to know people and get around,

big enough to find anything you want,

even a good-paying insurance job.

Too much growth may end up

sickening this golden goose...

Shhhh.

DSCN6791

Cahokia Mounds - atop Monk's Mound.  Unreal to be standing where a thriving civilization carried out sacred rites nearly a thousand years previous.  Well worth the 6-hour drive down there to see it all. 

Massive Modern Monument

Massive steel base solid to the touch,

still gleams bright after fifty-plus years.

People even carve their initials into the sides,

which rise diffident into endless blue sky.

Takes longer than expected to get close,

then is larger than one would think...

One descends into a technological cavern,

all flashing video histories and displays,

every surface made into another presentation.

Model of old St Louis, complete with a

prosperous fur traders home. Antique

tools, crockery, bottles and ceramics.

Display after display tugs your eyes astray.

Finally one makes it past all of that,

for the place to the ultimate ride.

Oh, but don’t forget about security.

Place all personal items in the bin, then

walk through the scanner, and retrieve your stuff,

hmm, just like an airport. Oh well.

Then you encounter a tour guide, who leads

you to one of seven small cars for the ride up.

The combination is like an

Elevator, Escalator, Ferris Wheel.

You ratchet and pivot and raise up.

You see views of many, many stairs and

frameworks, struts and supports.

Four minutes later,

you arrive,

your car levels,

lines up to a door, and

presto, it opens.

You are there, 630 feet up, at the top!

A massive monument to modern civilization

lets us common folk go all the way up, and

look out over a metropolis, two states and a mighty river.

A rare and delightful experience, even if

they charge fourteen bucks to go up in it.

It was worth it.

Anxiety Unplugged

Anxiety rises up in me.

I sit here by a gurgling creek,

water coursing over toes,

sun dappling my surroundings.

Cardinals and blackbirds dodge and parry,

Many other species sing in the June air.

But

the peace of a beautiful afternoon threatens

to be overshadowed by concerns:

I left my phone at home,

computer turned off,

Wi_fi modem powerless.

Am sitting here here disconnected,

technologically blind on the sand...

And isn’t it wonderful?

New awareness tamps down anxieties;

Cardinals dance and chase dragonflies,

Sunbeams illuminate life-chocked air

coruscating above the stream.

“Just enjoy it” I think – totally offline,

no one to spy on me and soak up data,

except for that pesky robin,

and she is just worried about her eggs,

stashed somewhere in the brush nearby.

“Hey, this isn’t half-bad,” I think.

Gonna have to do this more often.

But the “civilized” part of me just cannot

stand it for very long.

I have things to do this evening, places to go.

In a mere twenty minutes,

I am re-shod, mounted back on my bike,

hugging the side of the road, pedalling back home.

A part of me still savors the sunshine and fresh air,

even as I anticipate online, wired gatherings that

loom just up around the corner and across the tracks.

Distinctions

 Like Hibiscus, Zinnias and Salvias in a garden,

different races add variety and color to society.

Like rebar adds strength to concrete,

so do other races add backbone to society.

Like flavoring and sauce on a casserole,

other races can add flavor and delight.

Like a new sport-utility vehicle loaded with options,

the variety of races give a lot of alternatives.

Like a metallic alloy combining several elements,

a good mix of races adds endurance and flexibility.

Like the most sophisticated semiconductors,

a rich mix of races adds intellectual prowess.

Whatever generation you come from,

one can agree that acceptance of other races

beside our own can be beneficial for society.