Poems

I was a skydiver
Jumped freestyle from 30,000 feet
The wind in my face and around me
Always brought out the rush
Falling at 125 miles per hour
Watching the ground approach
Jump after jump and then
It finally happened my parachute didn’t open
I did not panic as I reached for my reserve chute
Nothing there as I pulled and pulled
Looking at the ground approaching fast
I thought the anxiety of my fall would kill me
But I would have to wait to hit the ground
Last thoughts of my wife and little girl
Seconds ticking away

I was an innocent victim of a drive by shooting
Talking to a friend in his front yard about tomorrow
Not knowing there would be no tomorrow
We were distracted by the children in the yard
Playing tag and chasing the dog
I heard the roar of an engine
A car coming by fast
The screech of brakes
The sound of tires spinning on the pavement
Before I could think
I heard the shot
I felt my wisdom teeth gone
All wisdom extinguished in a moment of time
My head jerked to the side
I felt a cold eeriness throughout my body
My eyes could see no more
And in a split second
I started to fall

I was in a vehicle driving down the Carefree Highway
I was a passenger in a car talking to my friend
Making plans for the future
A concert next week
Basketball tomorrow night
Listening to my favorite song, "Wrecking Ball"
He was driving too fast
In a hurry to see his girlfriend, Hailee
His phone went off
He looked down at the message
“It’s a text message from Hailee” he said.
That was the last words I heard
I just felt myself spinning
Out of control
Dust and the sound of metal against metal
I felt the seat belt give
As I left the vehicle flying through the air
It is all I remember
The sudden shock of reality
In a world passing me by
Three people looking forward for tomorrow
Living life to the fullest
All hitting the ground today
Leaving behind a text message that said
“Wish you were here”

A winter's day in Wyoming

Cloudy sky

Snow falling

Wind blowing below zero

A solitary miner

Doing her job

In an unsafe area

Fans blowing

The frozen air

Deep into the mine

So men could breathe

But it took the breath away

For Mary Ball

She was the first female miner

In a Wyoming Trona mine

Deep into the earth

She found her home

1600 feet underground

Side by side

She worked with men

Took their words

Their shoves and glares

Knowing staring

And swearing

Could not bring her

To the surface

The years went by

She played their game

Followed their rules

Fought the pain

Trying to gain an edge

For the future

Checking safety equipment

In a unsafe building

And a solitary step

In a cold icy building

Would cause a slip and fall

It says it all 

Taking the life away

Of Mary Ball

Mary Ball

Would take the fall

And fall she did

Into the cold and lonely

Building with icy floors

Shutting doors

She would not be found

Until other miners

Would bring her out

Clutch her frozen body

Before putting it back

Into the ground

Where she belonged

But she will not come out

Anymore

I chased a butterfly
And found myself
Out of breath with empty hands
You said they were meant
To be free anyway
 

Running on in the rain
I felt a chill
Until you touched me
I then smiled
And did a somersault
On the way home
My freedom behind me
Floating with a butterfly
 

A ONE ACT PLAY
 

It was a one act play
She moved in fluid motion
Flowing into the scenes
In the heat of the night
She showed passion beyond reason
Beyond comprehension
Beyond existence
 

In the colors of autumn
She showed confusion
Lack of understanding with herself
The fear of the coming winter
 

In the light of day
She showed sadness
A trace of a feeling
That is now gone
Reality of her life
Walking on a tightrope
 

It was a one act play
Of her thoughts
Continuing as the curtain closed
Leaving an empty feeling in time
Somewhere behind her 

September day

For: Juanita

It is a warm September day

In Arizona

Over 100 degrees and

Scattered showers

Across the horizon

Distance is not measured by miles

Only the beat of a heart

Today a cactus wren

Dances across a Saguaro cactus

There is no music in the air

Just a breeze

To lift wings into a flutter

Tonight she is away

The computer silent

A plane flies into a storm

It is snowing in Wyoming

So many miles away

I think about her vision

The cactus wren 

Steps inside the cactus

Searching for shelter 

From the heat

I hope she finds

Shelter from the storm

Keeping her safe

As I place her vision before me

Lifting me up 

As a plane will lift her up

Bringing her back

To Arizona

It was after a test

On King Lear

Shakespeare still

On her mind

As she peeled an orange

Her fingers caressing it

Like a surgeon

Performing a delicate operation

Her concentration

Was sincere

Peelings carefully arranged

Perfection as she lifted

A section

To her lips

The taste sweet

Her senses alive

Shakespeare still

On her mind

I saw her eating
An orange
The way she
Picked it up
With her hands

Gently broke
The outside layer
And peeled it
Moving her hands
As if to a symphony

Broke it apart
Placed it to her lips
Taking her time
Until it was gone

Only an orange
That was once
Just sitting

On a table

Life is filled with roads

Pathways

Every day we are faced

With decisions

That can elevate us

To new heights

Or take us down

To new lows

It is often hard to see

What lingers on the horizon

That is why we use 

The past to guide us

But often we need change

Not reflected in our past

That is when we must

Roll the dice

Take a chance

To seek new avenues

The most important obstacles

On our path are the bridges

For they are the link

To take us across

Into unknown lands

The bridges are the key

To our expansion

To seek life to the fullest

In our quest to survive

We must realize

Some bridges are meant to be crossed

And crossed back over

Other bridges are meant

To be burned

Rich Gunyan & Virgil Chabre

 I was a child

Living a life of childhood dreams

Consisting of hide and seek

And thoughts of Willie Mays

And Johnny Unitas

But somewhere along the way

I was thrust into manhood

Looking at life

Through the sites of an M-16

It was such a narrow view

Sunglasses shading my M-16 eyes

Louie the Plumber's House

He was a neighbor

Drifted into town

From the pillars of hell

His personality

Was burning with a desire

To make people miserable

He hated kids

Dogs

And any human being

With a soul

For he never understood 

The meaning of brotherly love

He never died

Of a heart attack

Rattlesnake bite

Or in a truck accident

Going to install a toilet

He fell out of a tree

All 300 pounds

Leaning on a branch

To find his way to eternity

And the earth shook

At the sound

Of Louie the plumber

Hitting the ground

Green River Railroad Bridge

for:  Juanita

It stands as a monument

Signifying the past of mankind

A jack rabbit runs

Underneath it

Getting shade 

From the summer sun

Built somewhere in the 1800s

It sways with the wind 

Wood creaking almost talking

Once able to hold locomotives

The fate of many men

A proud creation of the past

The wind blows

Sending a warning

To the jack rabbit

He moves into the sunshine

Hearing the sounds

Of ghosts of past railroad riders

They hail the monument

As their own