Tag Archives: dream

I have always thought that the California coast is the acoustic version of the New Jersey coast

In his dream,
the ocean is always on the right
which means he’s heading south to San Francisco
or Santa Barbara or Los Angeles
or San Diego,
saints and angels;
and his hair is blond even though it isn’t
and his companion’s hair is blond
and his friends in the back seat
their hair is blond too
and all that blond hair is blowing in the breeze
and there are surfers bobbing on the ocean
waiting for a wave
and a group is singing three-part harmony
on the radio, it could be the Mamas and the Papas
it could be Crosby Stills and Nash
it could be The Eagles
it could be The Beach Boys
and the band members
in the bands he’s dreaming of
have names like Dewey, Don, Randy, Jackson
names that arrived by railroad, by wagon train
and there is the feeling in his head
of youth and endless possibilities
something waiting down the road
and in the dream
he knows that he won’t arrive
he will always be on the way
and not arriving is the trick
and not arriving is the best part
the best part by far.

This is in part inspired by a prompt over on dverse;

“Krisis: Poetry at the Crossroads. Rooted in the Greek word krisis, meaning a pivotal decision point, we seek poems that explore moments of transformation, choice, and change.​

Taking part in Open Link over at dverse.

Mr. Cahoots

Mr. Cahoots

In the dream
I’m walking in East Vancouver

the setting sun illuminates
the low shoebox buildings

the streets are empty
except for me
and the guy who’s following me

his name is Mr. Cahoots

he’s wearing a pink top hat
a pink frock coat
pink flared pants
and gold boots

mostly he follows
but every now and again
he scuttles past
and walking backwards
he gives me the jazz hands
and laughs in my face

his eyes are manic
his nose is aquiline
and I know what he is saying
although he isn’t saying anything

he’s saying
You! You are not in control!

he’s saying
You! You are not in control!

In response to Brendan’s prompt over at earthweal

Write a dream poem using its language and rhetoric and dark sense. What moony light does it cast on the day? If you care, add to the poem or a note with any associations from waking life that the dream seems to be commenting on. If the dream is your unconscious speaking to you, what is it trying to help your waking writing mind to see?

My sister died recently after a very short illness. She was the eldest, there are six of us. I had the dream described in the above poem around the time she died. A family , particularly a large family is, in some ways, a collection of vantage points and we lost our top vantage point, the one who had seen it all. Now five seems like a very small number.