photo (above): Morro Bay, California by the author
Have you hugged your whale today?
Willing a Whale
Someone once told me if I hugged a whale
The oceans would calm and the sea beasts prevail
But my arms were too short and I knew I would fail
Even when I tried it down by his tail
So using a technique I learned in Madrid
Forehead to forehead I hugged with my Id
That was the weirdest thing I ever did
The whale was surprised melding minds with a kid
I thought ‘Do you like me?’ The whale pictured, ‘Yes,’
and showed me where Blackbeard had buried a chest
‘Now, do run along boy, I’m needing of rest’
And that’s when I hugged him for being the best
That was the last time I saw Mr. Whale
To this day, nobody believes in this tale
But sure as a sunset, the sea did prevail
So call it a fluke and I’ll call it his tail
Joseph John Racano
Willing a Whale
Someone once told me if I hugged a whale
The oceans would calm and the sea beasts prevail
But my arms were too short and I knew I would fail
Even when I tried it down by his tail
So using a technique I learned in Madrid
Forehead to forehead I hugged with my Id
That was the weirdest thing I ever did
The whale was surprised melding minds with a kid
I thought ‘Do you like me?’ The whale pictured, ‘Yes,’
and showed me where Blackbeard had buried a chest
‘Now, do run along boy, I’m needing of rest’
And that’s when I hugged him for being the best
That was the last time I saw Mr. Whale
To this day, nobody believes in this tale
But sure as a sunset, the sea did prevail
So call it a fluke and I’ll call it his tail
Joseph John Racano
Nature Class
Roll me down the flower carpet
Gentle sloping green escarpment
Push my nose into the grass
Mother Nature’s nature class
Tour the hillside using gravity
No more john deere lawn depravity
Let the growing flowers grow
Intermittent showers flow
Vital is the hornet’s sting
Bumblebee is on the wing
The tears we shed last but a minute
This his field and we are in it
At the bottom, vernal pool
Welcome to eternal school
Tiger salamander’s lair
Roll on down and meet me there!
Joseph John Racano
Twenty Days
It’s twenty days ‘till Earth Day
I hope you’ve got a plan
To benefit the planet for
The betterment of man
It soon will be upon us
That altruistic day
One complete rotation when
Our tribe holds hands to pray
The day to give shell necklaces
Back to hermit crabs
Time to make real progress
No more dribs and drabs
The children of the future
Have everything to lose
Are we going to rescue them?
The time has come to choose
Joseph John Racano
©4/2/22@JosephJohnRacano
It’s twenty days ‘till Earth Day
I hope you’ve got a plan
To benefit the planet for
The betterment of man
It soon will be upon us
That altruistic day
One complete rotation when
Our tribe holds hands to pray
The day to give shell necklaces
Back to hermit crabs
Time to make real progress
No more dribs and drabs
The children of the future
Have everything to lose
Are we going to rescue them?
The time has come to choose
Joseph John Racano
©4/2/22@JosephJohnRacano
Excavator
Excavator
Dig that mine
Product of a twisted mind
What mechanic
spent his days
On his back inventing ways
Bigger, faster
Fuller, better
Giant rock enviro-shredder
Stacks the ore
in sky-high piles
Turns around in two square miles
Open pit
Carbide bit
Windshield drips tobacco spit
Whistle blows
Night crew shows
Day shift goes until who knows
Digs a gash
From here to Klamath
I think we struck another Mammoth
Call the boss
Total loss
Operator’s on the sauce
Broken helmet
Dirty face
But you can see this hole from space
Excavator
Dig that mine
We only have a little time
Move those hills
They block the view
I’ve got another job for you
JR 12/28/14
Guardian of Flora
Deep inside the forest where the air is sweet
I came upon a woman in her two bare feet
A spirit of the wood and she was quite un-tame
Dancing in her palm was an eternal flame
On either side a loyal Canis Lupus strode
Warning me to stay a distance off the road
Something in her aura spoke an ancient good
Guardian of flora in the neighborhood
All along the trail I saw the bones of men
Forest cutters never more to log again
Hunters having hunted in the sacred place
Meeting their demise within her dark embrace
Traveler in the trees I suffered no such fate
Tried to snap a photograph a bit too late
Maybe I imagined her in soft chiffon
When I turned to see her she and wolves were gone
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/14/2020
Artwork by: artispixel
Illusia
Deep in the woods where the autumn leaves blow
An ancient black magic rides the wings of a crow
And lands on the shoulder of a beautiful witch
It’s talons draw blood that is blacker than pitch
The witch is Illusia she dwells in the trees
Calling the creatures below from her knees
Casting her spell from a candlelight circle
Sparkling flames burning blue hot and purple
Speaking a language forgotten in time
Chanting with cadence and whispering in rhyme
Conjuring ancestors buried beneath
Her delicate moccasined sorcerine feet
Lovely Illusia witching the wood
Protecting the forest her magic is good
Call in the ancestral spirits and crows
To seek out the demons and neutralize those
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/09/29/2020
Artwork: chazillah
Deep in the woods where the autumn leaves blow
An ancient black magic rides the wings of a crow
And lands on the shoulder of a beautiful witch
It’s talons draw blood that is blacker than pitch
The witch is Illusia she dwells in the trees
Calling the creatures below from her knees
Casting her spell from a candlelight circle
Sparkling flames burning blue hot and purple
Speaking a language forgotten in time
Chanting with cadence and whispering in rhyme
Conjuring ancestors buried beneath
Her delicate moccasined sorcerine feet
Lovely Illusia witching the wood
Protecting the forest her magic is good
Call in the ancestral spirits and crows
To seek out the demons and neutralize those
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/09/29/2020
Artwork: chazillah
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Lantern Fly
Behold the spotted lantern fly
His dazzling patterns please the eye
Through darkness comes to shine a light
And hold his lamp against the night
Checkered wings to float on air
And leopard spots to make him fair
A shock of red that draws attention
Clever stripes much worth the mention
Lantern circus on the wing
Making lady lanterns sing
Some with numbers more intense
Would dare to call thee pestilence
But I cannot perceive you so
You move with grace like waters flow
So shine on lantern 'till the end
And I will always be your friend
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/9/9/2021
Behold the spotted lantern fly
His dazzling patterns please the eye
Through darkness comes to shine a light
And hold his lamp against the night
Checkered wings to float on air
And leopard spots to make him fair
A shock of red that draws attention
Clever stripes much worth the mention
Lantern circus on the wing
Making lady lanterns sing
Some with numbers more intense
Would dare to call thee pestilence
But I cannot perceive you so
You move with grace like waters flow
So shine on lantern 'till the end
And I will always be your friend
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/9/9/2021
The Amazing true story of Birty-bird
There once was a birdy who lived all alone
She spoke once a day with her moms ringing phone
"Who's that?" I inquired, at seeing the cage
"That's Birty" her mom said while flipping a page
"Her real owner died and they left her to me-
but I don't have time, as you clearly can see."
"Well, why don't you let me try finding a home-
it doesn't seem right she should be so alone."
So it was decided that she'd come with me
I called up a friend with an aviary
And when we got Birty-bird out in the light
Her colors were awesome, resplendent and brite!
And Birty-bird moved in with other cute birds
Chip-chippy chirping a lot of bird words
After getting married and raising a child
The Birty-bird family was released to the wild
Joseph John Racano
(Birty at center)
There once was a birdy who lived all alone
She spoke once a day with her moms ringing phone
"Who's that?" I inquired, at seeing the cage
"That's Birty" her mom said while flipping a page
"Her real owner died and they left her to me-
but I don't have time, as you clearly can see."
"Well, why don't you let me try finding a home-
it doesn't seem right she should be so alone."
So it was decided that she'd come with me
I called up a friend with an aviary
And when we got Birty-bird out in the light
Her colors were awesome, resplendent and brite!
And Birty-bird moved in with other cute birds
Chip-chippy chirping a lot of bird words
After getting married and raising a child
The Birty-bird family was released to the wild
Joseph John Racano
(Birty at center)
Blade of Grass
I came upon a blade of grass
I struggled by but could not pass
The smooth green tone and emerald skin
Held me fast and pulled me in
I listened to its whispers
on deeply bended knee
And asked if it aspired
to grow into a tree
It chuckled with a laugh that seemed
to come from deep within
Bending in the wind its body
formed a mirthful grin
Then the sky grew dusk and
purple amaranth took hold
I found myself enchanted with
this ribbon heart of gold
The blade of grass invited me
to stay until the light
Would I be her shadow through
dark perils of the night
She sang about the soil
into which she dug her toes
We saw a shooting star
She said we get a lot of those
I took off both my sandals and
I rooted in the ground
Stayed a hundred years beside
the blade of grass I found
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/7/25/2021
Art: The Ga1axy
I came upon a blade of grass
I struggled by but could not pass
The smooth green tone and emerald skin
Held me fast and pulled me in
I listened to its whispers
on deeply bended knee
And asked if it aspired
to grow into a tree
It chuckled with a laugh that seemed
to come from deep within
Bending in the wind its body
formed a mirthful grin
Then the sky grew dusk and
purple amaranth took hold
I found myself enchanted with
this ribbon heart of gold
The blade of grass invited me
to stay until the light
Would I be her shadow through
dark perils of the night
She sang about the soil
into which she dug her toes
We saw a shooting star
She said we get a lot of those
I took off both my sandals and
I rooted in the ground
Stayed a hundred years beside
the blade of grass I found
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/7/25/2021
Art: The Ga1axy
Secret of the Billabong Tree
Something very
Extraordinary
Happened to me
Called the Billabong tree
Side of the highway
Face of a cliff
On the precipice
I came across this
I pulled to the side
Swallowed my pride
Put on the flashers
Warning off crashers
The tree was too green
The greenest I’ve seen
Every Eucalyptus leaf
Extraordinarily clean
I sauntered ‘round about
I had to check it out
The story must be told
Ecological pot of gold
Must be kept a secret
Improbable bog
Foot deep by a meter
And home of a frog
Of all the lucky dharma
None that I deserve
I watched with weepy eyes
As traffic had to swerve
If happenstance you chance upon
A too-green tree without a pond
Here and there a random frond
With photograph you may abscond
I hate to sound monotonous
Lo, the Wisp has not forgotten us!
Exquisite tree, autonomous
That must remain anonymous
Joseph John Racano
poem and photos ©@JosephJohnRacano/08/07/2020
Something very
Extraordinary
Happened to me
Called the Billabong tree
Side of the highway
Face of a cliff
On the precipice
I came across this
I pulled to the side
Swallowed my pride
Put on the flashers
Warning off crashers
The tree was too green
The greenest I’ve seen
Every Eucalyptus leaf
Extraordinarily clean
I sauntered ‘round about
I had to check it out
The story must be told
Ecological pot of gold
Must be kept a secret
Improbable bog
Foot deep by a meter
And home of a frog
Of all the lucky dharma
None that I deserve
I watched with weepy eyes
As traffic had to swerve
If happenstance you chance upon
A too-green tree without a pond
Here and there a random frond
With photograph you may abscond
I hate to sound monotonous
Lo, the Wisp has not forgotten us!
Exquisite tree, autonomous
That must remain anonymous
Joseph John Racano
poem and photos ©@JosephJohnRacano/08/07/2020
Mant
On trek through the jungle I cut through deep bush
Machete in hand came around with a whoosh
The minutes turned ever so slowly to hours
Chopping my way through a riot of flowers
Finally I arrived home in my shell
Off of the beaten path too far to sell
Daily routine after work at the plant
Such is the life and travails of a Mant
Mants are the aftermath of a great comet
Aliens sent to our planet to bomb it
Terraform shortcut thought up by a genius
Rarely however is genius that heinous
Wanting to nurture and cultivate man
They wiped out the dinosaurs that was their plan
With no one for light years to tell them ‘you can’t’
Freed tiny shrew which evolved into Mant
Mant didn’t grow up as large as was hoped
Comet-borne chemicals got the shrews doped
Affected our growth and affected our brains
Mants are so short that we drown when it rains
Up in the morning Mant back to work goes
Having to watch out for dive bombing crows
We need a genius to help us with that
One thing for sure is, we can’t get a cat
Joseph John Racano
Art: jorge jacinto
Photo (above): Joseph John Racano at Humboldt Monastery, California
The Tree
May I explain my tall love for the tree
Sheltered from rain when I stand next to thee
Boughs bend around me as rainfall gets harder
Here’s to those who would defend him with ardor
May I go into the intoxication
How you ignite in my heart conflagration
How I caress you by placing my hands
Soft on your trunk as a partner in dance
From whence you come and where thither ye go
Nothing can change this love I’ve come to know
Hardly a moments regret to rescind
Standing here watching you sway in the wind
A masterful artist has sprinkled you down
A home for the creatures already a towne
No need to harvest or harm or degrade
Feast on his beauty but spare him the blade
Joseph John Racano
May I explain my tall love for the tree
Sheltered from rain when I stand next to thee
Boughs bend around me as rainfall gets harder
Here’s to those who would defend him with ardor
May I go into the intoxication
How you ignite in my heart conflagration
How I caress you by placing my hands
Soft on your trunk as a partner in dance
From whence you come and where thither ye go
Nothing can change this love I’ve come to know
Hardly a moments regret to rescind
Standing here watching you sway in the wind
A masterful artist has sprinkled you down
A home for the creatures already a towne
No need to harvest or harm or degrade
Feast on his beauty but spare him the blade
Joseph John Racano
Time and Spirit
Tell me the story of the big bad man
Who tossed Mother Nature in a garbage can
Arrived on shore at Plymouth Rock
And all he could envision was a city block
Did it all really happen – is that really our history?
So hard to believe it in this field of playful mystery
How could all those cities disappear without a trace?
Everywhere I look I just don’t see a human race
What about migrations of the elk and caribou
Did cities close up shop when all the giant herds came through?
What about the people when they looked up in the sky-
How could they not miss 100 million geese flying by?
Perhaps because the people had the honking of the cars
And everywhere the lights that served to obscure the stars
Anyway never mind - I don’t really want to hear it
It’s in the past, the world recast -she never lost her spirit
Joseph John Racano
*Another installment from the 2020 'Pandemic Poetry' Series by J.J.Racano
Tell me the story of the big bad man
Who tossed Mother Nature in a garbage can
Arrived on shore at Plymouth Rock
And all he could envision was a city block
Did it all really happen – is that really our history?
So hard to believe it in this field of playful mystery
How could all those cities disappear without a trace?
Everywhere I look I just don’t see a human race
What about migrations of the elk and caribou
Did cities close up shop when all the giant herds came through?
What about the people when they looked up in the sky-
How could they not miss 100 million geese flying by?
Perhaps because the people had the honking of the cars
And everywhere the lights that served to obscure the stars
Anyway never mind - I don’t really want to hear it
It’s in the past, the world recast -she never lost her spirit
Joseph John Racano
*Another installment from the 2020 'Pandemic Poetry' Series by J.J.Racano
Pandemic Moon
Now savor sweet Pandemic Moon
The hardships will be over soon
Floating flower of the night
Guardian of love and light
Oh had I but been born sooner
Cradled in the arms of Luna
Knowing all the Earth’s delight
See her creatures sans the fright
To the land before Leukemia
Turn the wall clock back Pandemia
Let the traffic noise come settle
Hear the whistle of the kettle
Illuminate the path back home
Grass expanse where Bison roam
When you abscond with my soul
Leave behind an Earth that’s whole
Joseph John Racano
*Another installment from the 2020 'Pandemic Poetry' Series by J.J.Racano
All rights reserved
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/19/2020
Bliss-blossom
Longing to wander ‘mongst bunny and ‘possum
I boarded the happy train touring faire Bliss-blossom
The weather was mild, the day made for outside
Clouds rolled like tumbleweeds, one was our guide
As we pulled slowly into the first station
There spoke a preacher to his congregation
Some kind of Sunday school it must have been
Giggling children with chocolate on chin
Next came the chugging of Happy Train’s pull
Colorful outfits and every car full
Toot went the whistle a bird on the tracks
All watched him fly as we munched on our snacks
Engineer wiped the front windows of dew
Just as faire Bliss-blossom came into view
Where large waiting crowds let go colored balloons
And ladies held bottle-fed baby raccoons
This was the scene as we pulled in the station
What a great way to wind up a vacation
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/08/2020
Lizard of Thunder
I find myself wondering more and more
About the colorful patterns of the dinosaur
Bigger than a bread box smaller than a whale
I love to imagine the stripes on his tail
Dorsal fin glowing with blue incandescence
Translucent dermis revealing his essence
Serpentine wetness protruding from a lake
Writhing gargantuan primordial snake
Skin print impressions we see more and more
As Paleontologists open the door
Tall rhythmic banding as seen on a bus
Millions of years before nature made us
Bright breeding plumage and sweet baby green
Sixty five million years since they were seen
Lateral checker spots light on the belly
Far more creative than seen on the tele
Eyes with chatoyancy girth offered buoyancy
Brains in the hip may have been for clairvoyance
Less like a lizard and with a bird’s gizzard
But trying to color him in takes a wizard
Artists renditions can be quite heroic
But only a poet can grasp Mesozoic
And so I will have to continue to wonder
What did you look like, great lizard of thunder?
Joseph John Racano
Summer Come Home
Thirty degrees a creak in the knees
Nary a leaf upon the trees
Icy windows, frigid wind blows
Hurry home to snuggle in those
Woolen blankets, stocking anklets
Steaming chicken soup pot banquets
Autumn left me all alone
Summer won’t you please come home
Icicles thriving, storms arriving
Howling wolves and wind conniving
Children sneezing, lake-tops freezing
Yetis dancing, mothers wheezing
Barometers dropping, thermometers stopping
Cupboards bare but can’t go shopping
Spotty service on the phone
Summer won’t you please come home
Children home from school in droves
Adding logs to pot-belly stoves
Bring the dog inside the house
Try to keep him off the couch
Watch the dropping mercury
Spring is where I’d rather be
Autumn left me all alone
Summer won’t you please come home
Joseph John Racano
Christmas Eve Ballet
Something happened Christmas Eve
Many people won’t believe
Whale boat Captain Steven Plantz
Got to watch an offshore dance
Two Gray Whales did make amore’
Here’s a poem to tell the story
Forty-nine from amidships
Saw them kissing on the lips
In from starboard swam the male
Lady twirled her flukey tail
Flashed her hazel eyes at him
Made him smile a four-foot grin
That’s when in from either side
Pacific Dolphins joined the ride
Then came lions of the sea
There to usher, apparently
Captain Plantz thought ‘this is crazy!’
One whale watcher tossed a daisy
No one could believe their eyes
Marveled at the whale’s great size
Breaching left then breaching right
Each one holding flippers tight
Dolphins leaping sea gulls laughing
In between a Gray Whale halfling
Riding shotgun down the coast
Captain Plantz and Gray Whale hosts
Footage taken from above
Did confirm the whales in love
Baby Gray was safe and warm
And thought, ‘This is how I was born’
Dolphins gathered mile by mile
Father gave a knowing smile
Seals went under, gulls went over
Choir sung by Snowy Plover
People watching, celebrating
Two in-love Gray Whales were mating
As they finally swam away
Captain Plantz was heard to say
‘Folks it’s time for us to leave-
How’s that for a Christmas Eve!
Joseph John Racano
video footage: Graydon Fanning
Dancing Birds
Out among the grasses
I saw the Dancing Birds
Snowy ballerinas
Defying all my words
Ghostly apparitions
Whose sweep of graceful wings
Held me rapt as they flapped
To the song a wetland sings
One wing up, one wing down
Two steps back and turn around
Now fly away- but not too far
So partner knows just where you are
You are the Dancing Birds
The tall white Dancing Birds
Males in white tuxedos
Bowed with handsome grace
To lady birds with feathered caps
That obscured their face
Necks entwined like serpents
Two hearts beat as one
Cheek to cheek and beak to beak
Until the dance was done
One wing up, one wing down
Two steps back, and turn around
Now fly away, but not too far
So partner knows just where you are
You are the dancing Birds
The graceful Dancing Birds
Snowy Dancing Birds
The lovely Dancing Birds
Joseph John Racano
Copyright@JosephJohnRacano
The Squeezel
Deep in the woods
I met with a Squeezel
Bounced like a squirrel
And shaped like a weasel
Spoke with a chit
Laughed with a chatter
Personality split
Mad as a hatter
I and my dog
Behind the old tree
A view of the Squeezel
Was quite plain to see
Up on his head
Two tree-like protrusions
That blended so well
They looked like illusions
The fur on his back
Was that of an otter
He lived in the part
Where the forest was hotter
Many a time
I went back to see him
Thinking his kind
Could be in a museum
With spots on his coat
Half leopard half measle
I came to dote
On this creature the Squeezel
Not sure my fellow men
Would understand him
I kept him a secret
Lest some catch and brand him
And lock him in irons
For all of his days
Sad, but my people
Treat creatures these ways
Best that the Squeezel
Stay will o' the wisp
Where tree trunks are mossy
And forest air crisp
Poem: Joseph John Racano
December 28, 2019
Artwork: Under the Gaze of the Glorious; Andy Kehoe Art—Oil on wood ( 2011)
African Sun
His name was Johnny, her name was Sal
Working at the circus each their only pal
No one ever asked them what a zebra likes
Too many years wearing prison stripes
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Johnny was a pony Sal was a mare
Johnny loved the fancy way she braided her hair
Shared their first kiss over sauce and spaghetti
Then they were trapped on the Serengeti
Just after closing when the tents shut down
Johnny gave his money to a circus clown
Gate swung open and the race was on
Sal woke up and saw her Johnny was gone
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Wrong way autobahn rush hour traffic
Sal tasted freedom and it felt fantastic
Poetry in motion running side by side
Then she heard a rifle and her Johnny died
Now when circus people come to town
Stable boys remember and lay flowers down
Say a little prayer by the highway side
In honor of the zebras on their one last ride
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Joseph John Racano
His name was Johnny, her name was Sal
Working at the circus each their only pal
No one ever asked them what a zebra likes
Too many years wearing prison stripes
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Johnny was a pony Sal was a mare
Johnny loved the fancy way she braided her hair
Shared their first kiss over sauce and spaghetti
Then they were trapped on the Serengeti
Just after closing when the tents shut down
Johnny gave his money to a circus clown
Gate swung open and the race was on
Sal woke up and saw her Johnny was gone
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Wrong way autobahn rush hour traffic
Sal tasted freedom and it felt fantastic
Poetry in motion running side by side
Then she heard a rifle and her Johnny died
Now when circus people come to town
Stable boys remember and lay flowers down
Say a little prayer by the highway side
In honor of the zebras on their one last ride
Run Zebra run, for the African sun
Only four directions and you have to choose one
As I see the odds are one in three
Head for the highway and you’re gonna be free
Joseph John Racano
Tale of the Spotted Lantern Fly
(Prisoner 5524251)
Born on the poor side of the railroad tracks
A nice little bug who just slipped through the cracks
Saw the lights heard the sirens and decided to run
Now he’s five- five two forty-two fifty-one
He’s poor but good
From a bad neighborhood
So misunderstood
Real good bug from a bad neighborhood
The trouble all started when he hijacked a rock
All the way from Asia to the Liberty Clock
Many would correct him, ‘You mean Liberty Bell”
To those who did he always said ‘Go to hell”
His wings were a carnival a peppered potpourri
Even with them closed he was a sight to see
Never had a problem with the lady bugs, please
But everything went sideways when it came to police
He’s poor but good
From a bad neighborhood
So misunderstood
Real good bug from a bad neighborhood
He arrived in the states on a load of rocks
Bright red carapace and polka dot socks
He never looked for trouble never carried a gun
But he’s five-five two forty-two fifty-one
Agriculture says he cost them 18 billion
Bug said he was framed just for being vermillion
That his favorite fruit target was the Tree of Heaven
But the bug replied simply, ‘turn that eight to a seven”
Wanted in a dozen states for two dozen crimes
Dancing underage and across state lines
Chewing boll-weevil through the grapes and vines
Boring like a beetle through the bark of pines
He finally met his waterloo in old P.A.
When he met a little cutie and decided to stay
They caught him in the morning but the night was fun
After a jail-break, he’s out on the run
(There’s more to the story but this tale is done)
The tale of prisoner 55242-fifty one!
Joseph John Racano
(Prisoner 5524251)
Born on the poor side of the railroad tracks
A nice little bug who just slipped through the cracks
Saw the lights heard the sirens and decided to run
Now he’s five- five two forty-two fifty-one
He’s poor but good
From a bad neighborhood
So misunderstood
Real good bug from a bad neighborhood
The trouble all started when he hijacked a rock
All the way from Asia to the Liberty Clock
Many would correct him, ‘You mean Liberty Bell”
To those who did he always said ‘Go to hell”
His wings were a carnival a peppered potpourri
Even with them closed he was a sight to see
Never had a problem with the lady bugs, please
But everything went sideways when it came to police
He’s poor but good
From a bad neighborhood
So misunderstood
Real good bug from a bad neighborhood
He arrived in the states on a load of rocks
Bright red carapace and polka dot socks
He never looked for trouble never carried a gun
But he’s five-five two forty-two fifty-one
Agriculture says he cost them 18 billion
Bug said he was framed just for being vermillion
That his favorite fruit target was the Tree of Heaven
But the bug replied simply, ‘turn that eight to a seven”
Wanted in a dozen states for two dozen crimes
Dancing underage and across state lines
Chewing boll-weevil through the grapes and vines
Boring like a beetle through the bark of pines
He finally met his waterloo in old P.A.
When he met a little cutie and decided to stay
They caught him in the morning but the night was fun
After a jail-break, he’s out on the run
(There’s more to the story but this tale is done)
The tale of prisoner 55242-fifty one!
Joseph John Racano
Monarch Child
I’m a brand new father and I couldn’t be more proud
Just observed a Monarch child emerging from his shroud
I simply planted milkweed and I saw the flowers grow
Watching with unbridled joy the mothers come and go
Nearby to a chrysalis a butterfly was still
Seemingly quite vulnerable to predatory kill
Then I came to realize this newborn was my son
Through traffic jams and land use scams the butterflies had won
All along the picket fence were chrysalis aligned
The spread of black and orange wings enough to blow my mind
The Mother Mary Monarch just continued floating by
Casting me a wary sideways look out of her eye
We’ve had an understanding now for 50 million years
Stretching from the Eocene to modern logging tears
A symbiotic breed of people know the monarch’s worth
And gallantly endeavor keeping butterflies on Earth
Joseph John Racano
I’m a brand new father and I couldn’t be more proud
Just observed a Monarch child emerging from his shroud
I simply planted milkweed and I saw the flowers grow
Watching with unbridled joy the mothers come and go
Nearby to a chrysalis a butterfly was still
Seemingly quite vulnerable to predatory kill
Then I came to realize this newborn was my son
Through traffic jams and land use scams the butterflies had won
All along the picket fence were chrysalis aligned
The spread of black and orange wings enough to blow my mind
The Mother Mary Monarch just continued floating by
Casting me a wary sideways look out of her eye
We’ve had an understanding now for 50 million years
Stretching from the Eocene to modern logging tears
A symbiotic breed of people know the monarch’s worth
And gallantly endeavor keeping butterflies on Earth
Joseph John Racano
The Ocean Reception
The ocean returned from a voyage at sea
Frothy and tired but bubbling with glee
Sandy, her lover held open his arms
The surf zone delighted to mingle their charms
Seagulls and seabirds called out from above
Hearts on the wing celebrating the love
Offshore anchovies were swirling tornadoes
Newly arrived from their homes in Barbados
Deep underwater sea cucumbers danced
Fond of the nudibranchs holding their hands
Cuttlefish cuddled and lit up the sea
Octopus clapping shown eight times the glee
Angler fish traveled from Marianas Trench
Sturgeon brought caviar and learned to speak French
Flying fish flew and the basking sharks basked
Great Barracuda did all they were asked
Oh, but the circumstance, pageantry, pomp
Guests at long tables went chompity-chomp
One urchin got sick from eating so much
In swam a nurse shark who brought him a crutch
All-in-all everything turned out quite swimmingly
Ocean said, “Sandy, look what guests are bringing me!”
Soon it was over, as quick as began
And Japanese swordfish swam back to Japan
Joseph John Racano
Watercolor by: Traci ‘Bear’ Thiele
Spiny Red Reef Lobster
Diving in a catacomb of underwater caves
A conservation activist who photos what he braves
Was on a special mission out to document a reef
And came upon a creature with couture beyond belief
His fortunes went from good to unbelievable at once
He set up lights and camera; was prepared to wait for months
There upon the wall he saw half-coral and half-kraken
A red kaleidoscope who asked to have his picture taken
His mustache shown in orange; the socks he wore were red
His pincer colored white and blue made sure his maw was fed
He soon brought out his family- a wife a girl a boy
Photographic rainbows thrice as colorful as koi
‘Thank you for cooperating, this is so amazing’
Said our hero to the spiny one with colors blazing
‘In all my dives I’ve only seen but one like you before’
He snapped another picture with his elbows on the floor
The ocean has it’s treasures of but few that have been seen
Sometimes it’s the pressured depths, or water that’s too green
Often it’s the tiger shark too close or too aggressive
Swimming by with tiger stripes resplendent and impressive
But this time was a perfect storm a hurricane of color
No one could invent a knob to make the camera duller
Brighter than the octopus of deadly blue-ringed fame
The envelope was opened and the judges called your name
Joseph John Racano
Photography: Terry Lilley
Diving in a catacomb of underwater caves
A conservation activist who photos what he braves
Was on a special mission out to document a reef
And came upon a creature with couture beyond belief
His fortunes went from good to unbelievable at once
He set up lights and camera; was prepared to wait for months
There upon the wall he saw half-coral and half-kraken
A red kaleidoscope who asked to have his picture taken
His mustache shown in orange; the socks he wore were red
His pincer colored white and blue made sure his maw was fed
He soon brought out his family- a wife a girl a boy
Photographic rainbows thrice as colorful as koi
‘Thank you for cooperating, this is so amazing’
Said our hero to the spiny one with colors blazing
‘In all my dives I’ve only seen but one like you before’
He snapped another picture with his elbows on the floor
The ocean has it’s treasures of but few that have been seen
Sometimes it’s the pressured depths, or water that’s too green
Often it’s the tiger shark too close or too aggressive
Swimming by with tiger stripes resplendent and impressive
But this time was a perfect storm a hurricane of color
No one could invent a knob to make the camera duller
Brighter than the octopus of deadly blue-ringed fame
The envelope was opened and the judges called your name
Joseph John Racano
Photography: Terry Lilley
Half Blood Thunder Moon
‘Tuesday it shall rise and ye are granted little choice’
I was taken by surprise at this unearthly gravelly voice
Standing at the forests’ edge I cowered ‘neath the trees
Out here all alone with just the knocking of my knees
‘And as ye watch her climb’ this voice of mystery continued
‘You’ll feel a strange upwelling of the wild beast within you’
‘Your hands will twist and form a fist your nails will grow and curl like this’
And now I saw the shriveled man, ornately carved wooden staff in hand
‘I cannot guess who you may be or what in hell you want with me
My wife awaits, with griddle cakes, her table set with nuts and grapes
And lo, I know she expects me soon, before the Half-Blood Thunder Moon’
I spoke my piece and told the man, then turned about; away I ran
But as I left that haunted wood, running swiftly as I could
His voice rang out above the trees ‘Yes, take your leave and with ye these!’
And sure enough I heard the wings of owls and bats and night-time things
They chased me right up to my door, my lungs were hot my dogs were sore
The door cracked open not a moment too soon-
‘Good nite ye Half-Blood Thunder Moon!’
Joseph John Racano
Beware the Cassowary
Be very wary of the cassowary
He's like an ape but not as hairy
Pretty as a peacock, claws like iron
Colorful as poetry from old Lord Byron
Do have a care 'round the cassowary
Quite large bird and his moods may vary
Please stand back or learn such wisdom
With one good swipe to the vascular system
Cassowary throwback to the giant moa
Prone to large eruptions like an angry krakatoa
Decidedly unsuitable for 'polly-want-a-cracker'
Cassowary likes to be a violent attacker
So if you come across one on vacation to New Guinea
He can change your naval from an outie to an innie
Gather pretty flowers and such shells as you can carry
But consciously decide to leave behind the cassowary
Joseph John Racano 4/14/19
Full Red Blood Wolf Moon
T’was still as a funerary sepulcher
on the Full Red Blood Wolf Moon
The beast wore matted neck nape fur
and howled a mournful tune
A sky above devoid of love
Chilled by winters’ wind
Frostbite stung right through the glove
Surely I had sinned
On snowshoe paws four canid claws
made tracks in soft white powder
Growling jaws and scowling maws
made pounding temples louder
The stealthy hunting Wolf came running
I froze in place with all my cunning
Lips pursed tight with all my might
One steamy breath could mean my death
Despite deep snow Red Wolf ran fast
I held my breath he ran right past
He pounced the ground and turned around
And offered me a hare he’d found!
I shook my head I had to smile
Red Wolf had seen me all the while
I showed palms up and took that hare
Red Wolf became my friend right there
He turned three circles in the snow
I gathered twigs and began to blow
No more than comfort to desire
We curled around a warming fire
Daylight came the storm broke up
Rich hot coffee filled my cup
I looked down and at my side
Red Wolf stretched himself out wide
The rest of the day was hunt and play
I asked his name but he would not say
Our time then ended much too soon
I and Full Red Blood Wolf Moon
Joseph John Racano
In honor of the Full Red Blood Wolf Moon, January 19th, 2019
In Autumn
Upon equinox departure, summer hands her leaves
to a riotous Autumn on a still-warm breeze
Southbound birds flash the plumage of fall
With a tailfeather spectrum and a bon voyage call
The Cicada lays buried, the squirrel goes nuts
Native people celebrate snug in their huts
Streams run cold in a babble of foam
Mother leads fawn on a tour of their home
Brown bear shakes, water flies from her mane
Salmon leap forward at the first torrential rain
Hikers go a-crunching on a red and yellow carpet
Poets turn the pages of a calendar and mark it
Scarecrow cheers and summer grieves
Windy devils spin the leaves
Some are caught beneath the eaves
of cabins nestled in the trees
Autumn sunset starts to glow
Moon rides high and the sun dips low
Blue sky now relents to gray
Autumn evening steals the day
Quiet falls upon the land
Autumn takes us by the hand
Light the fire, close the door
Summer we shall see no more
Joseph John Racano
9/22/18
Robot to the Rescue
On the late wanes of August, 'twas robot complete
The shiny machine lay there at my feet
Compiling the target in glowing red eye
Those reef-killing Lionfish were all soon to die
I wound up the battery and pulled on the lever
Thinking myself and my team to be clever
Then robot moved slowly and entered the water
Descending eight fathoms engaging in slaughter
But round about seventeen Lionfish in
The robot slowed down and it started to spin
It seemed that the robot's swift calculate brain
Digested its info, re-booted again
Before we could stop it, or hit the kill switch
The robot made landfall, refocused its nitch
The Lionfish, our new A.I. had deduced
Was only a sympton of who'd be reduced
And so it was clear to our good team of science
The robot re-targeted where to use violence
It went for the problem, the problem was people
Although they were smart, their spirits were feeble
So off to the city our robot did go
Easily culling (the humans were slow)
And soon population was under control
The people were gone, we saved the atoll
Joseph John Racano
8/28/18
Blood Red Moon
A fire on the blackness, I craned my neck and head
Like someone took a cannon and fired a ball of red
A glow was on the window panes
Shining like the summer rains
Higher than the highest planes
I rubbed my neck to quell the pains
Rolling like a crimson boulder headed 'cross the sky
Rounded ruby fit for gods, bedazzling the eye
Once upon a century
Rare as it was meant to be
Soaring high and over me
An infrared dichotomy
Perhaps it is a Moon of cheese
Adorned in cashmere sweater
Celestial but well-dressed man
Made up of fresh red cheddar
Laying nations under siege
I'll take mine with cottage cheese
Don't forget tomatoes, please
Rare are nights so strange as these
Off into the atmosphere
Big and round and red and queer
Into the Ionosphere
Returning every hundredth year
Joseph John Racano
Hold those Goldfish
Goodness gracious, hold your Goldfish
Cute while young but not when old fish
If they ram you they can bruise hips
Ten feet long and they sink cruise ships
Please kind friend don't get me wrong
You can still sing Salmon song
Dump the Rainbow though non-native
Sporting men are legislative
Show of hands, who was about
When Tahoe still had Cutthroat Trout?
Now our lakes are full of transplants
Wiping out the native lake plants
Spread the Lake Trout, Brook and Brown
But don't you spread Goldfish around
Management has set the rules
Ecosystems run by fools
Joseph John Racano
How Do You Please a Plesiasaur
Here's something no one's ever seen before
It washed up on a beach around a quarter to four
A former dino-child it rocked me to the core
An excellent example of a Plesiasaur
Reports are coming in all over the Earth
What's a mesazoic creature like that worth
No one can agree on length or height or its girth
Let alone its origin or place of birth
It seemed a little soggy much the worse for wear
A hundred million years ago no one would care
But 2018 and on a Georgia beach
With serpentine flippers and a long-neck reach
The scientists have questions and the press have more
Are they still alive or did it slip through a door
I guess that as a layman I can ask one more-
Just how exactly do you please a Plesiasaur?
Perhaps by helping him go back through time
Or maybe with a rag to help remove some slime
I'm too afraid to touch him, it may be a crime
For now I'll be content to write a Plesiasaur rhyme:
1-2-3-4, -How do you please a Plesiasaur
Salted fish? Granted wish?
Push him back through the time-trap door?
5-6-7-8, -I wonder what the Plesiasaur ate
Lot's of fish? Potato Knish?
What powered that tails swish swish swish?
Alas, some mysteries must endure
But one thing that we know for sure
The burning question at the core, is
'How do you please a Plesiasaur?'
In the end a wave swooped in
Returned him to the sea again
When the rangers arrived it already had dived
They said 'go home and get some sleep my friend'
Now I often stare to sea, and sometimes he stares back at me
Beak to peck, thin of neck, goo-goo eyes and scaly as heck
It's raised many questions, so I ask once more:
'Just how - how indeed- does one please,
and I ask you please please please
How do you please a Plesiasaur!'
Joseph John Racano
God of the Jungle
God of the jungle
Lord of the night
To meet you is knowing
The meaning of fright
A beautiful stallion
of feline persuasion
Voted best dressed
for most any occasion
The sight of your paw prints
Fills giants with terror
The gash on the tree
Marks the travelers error
The Unicorn pales
when compared to your beauty
You don't kill for sport
It's simply your duty
A pause on your quest
Your claws for to sharpen
Your maw opens wide
For to Pleistocene harkin
God of the Jungle
So light on your feet
Live long and prosper
and I hope we don't meet
Joseph John Racano
Cockerel Crows
Listen by the window
Are those footfalls that I hear?
Could it be my old good friend
A hungry little deer
And though he's maybe grown in size
I'm still the apple of his eyes
Waiting at the window sill
With treats to comfort winter's chill
With musky breath of rising steam
He's come for cookies bread and cream
Some forgotten fawn I've mended
Or just a wild stag befriended
Return Aurora Borealis
Begone, be spared the hunter's malice
Returning as the cockerel crows
I'll hide your tracks so no one knows
Joseph John Racano
Petrified Eye
In a long ago forest the swamp mist rose
Primordial mud squished through dinosaur toes
Dragonflies buzzed twice as big as crows
But nothing lasts forever every good man knows
The swamps dried up and the ferns fell down
Dragonflies downsized but still hung 'round
Lightning gave face to thunders booming sound
And trees began to harden, sprawled on the ground
A hundred million years came and went, rolled by
Sediment became cement, a fossilized pie
None still lived who'd heard a dinosaurs cry
The only thing remaining was the Petrified Eye
It wasn't any more than just a horizontal log
Turned to solid stone along with petrified bog
Somewhere deep inside perhaps it still contained a frog
In the context of forever, just a planetary cog
The Petrified Eye was the watcher in the wisp
Always trained on everything that everybody missed
I stumbled up upon it so close I could have kissed
The eye was solid rock confirmed by banging with my fist
There wasn't time for gloating just a snapshot on the run
The eye had captured many and now even I was one
But just where in the whole of time would my own chapter come
We'd have to wait and see when they tally up the sum
The eye of early turbulence the eye of coming storms
The eye of Arizona came from anyplace but norms
The eye of early oceans within which swam many forms
Eventually to graduate like scholars from their dorms
The dinosaur, the Minotaur, the eye of what will be
The eye of what will come to pass though not yet ours to see
The eye of history, veiled in mystery, once a living tree
Petrified Eye 'neath a desert sky, I will myself to thee
Joseph John Racano
photo: Racano
Diabolical Orchid
Through the mists of time
there is much to uncover
From mundane to sublime
Many things we discover
If we take a close look
At a field or a brook
We may there see the face
Of a king or a crook
Mother Nature's University
Teaching endless diversity
A dragon-shaped cloud
Relents to dispersity
Rainbows and Moonbows
Dinosaur elbows
Mind-bending mushrooms
Crystalline ice flows
Anemones, Nudibranchs
Blue-ringed Octopus think tanks
Easy-open banana peel
Multi-hued Ribbon Eels
Force five tornadoes
Storms of ball lightning
Rising Volcanoes
Avalanche whitening
Traveling spiders floating six miles high
Water-walking Water-striders striding on by
Fifty-legged Centipedes wholly outdone
By niftier Millipedes with one hundred and one
Sunset skies, such a treat for the eyes
Endlessly Nature provides us surprise
And just when you thought that there couldn't be more, kid
Behold the newly discovered Diabolical Orchid
Joseph John Racano
5/30/17
Through the mists of time
there is much to uncover
From mundane to sublime
Many things we discover
If we take a close look
At a field or a brook
We may there see the face
Of a king or a crook
Mother Nature's University
Teaching endless diversity
A dragon-shaped cloud
Relents to dispersity
Rainbows and Moonbows
Dinosaur elbows
Mind-bending mushrooms
Crystalline ice flows
Anemones, Nudibranchs
Blue-ringed Octopus think tanks
Easy-open banana peel
Multi-hued Ribbon Eels
Force five tornadoes
Storms of ball lightning
Rising Volcanoes
Avalanche whitening
Traveling spiders floating six miles high
Water-walking Water-striders striding on by
Fifty-legged Centipedes wholly outdone
By niftier Millipedes with one hundred and one
Sunset skies, such a treat for the eyes
Endlessly Nature provides us surprise
And just when you thought that there couldn't be more, kid
Behold the newly discovered Diabolical Orchid
Joseph John Racano
5/30/17
photos: Nancy Bast
February Rain
February Rain on Carrizzo Plain
Brought pastel flowers
through a chalky membrane
A formerly dusty no-flower town
Bursting colors all around
Milky blues and other soft hues
Beckoning one to remove their shoes
If you know the Soda Lake
You know this looks almost fake
As if a Garden Fairy wielded
magic shovel and enchanted rake
I want to get to know them
Every single stem
Nibble like a rabbit
And call each one of them my friend
Rolling over on my back
making flower angels
Being part of something
Ethereal and ageless
See them from the bottom
Know them from all angles
Get their scent into my hair
Entwine them in my tangles
Colors massing at the border
Anything but law and order
Floral disobedience from
San Andreas problem daughter
Though March has brought
a month of clearing
Still the flowers stay endearing
Singing far above our hearing
April soon will be appearing
Trying hard to thank you
February Rain
For it may be a hundred years
Before we meet again
Joseph John Racano
3/28/17
February Rain
February Rain on Carrizzo Plain
Brought pastel flowers
through a chalky membrane
A formerly dusty no-flower town
Bursting colors all around
Milky blues and other soft hues
Beckoning one to remove their shoes
If you know the Soda Lake
You know this looks almost fake
As if a Garden Fairy wielded
magic shovel and enchanted rake
I want to get to know them
Every single stem
Nibble like a rabbit
And call each one of them my friend
Rolling over on my back
making flower angels
Being part of something
Ethereal and ageless
See them from the bottom
Know them from all angles
Get their scent into my hair
Entwine them in my tangles
Colors massing at the border
Anything but law and order
Floral disobedience from
San Andreas problem daughter
Though March has brought
a month of clearing
Still the flowers stay endearing
Singing far above our hearing
April soon will be appearing
Trying hard to thank you
February Rain
For it may be a hundred years
Before we meet again
Joseph John Racano
3/28/17
Lady in the Feathered Dress
'I'm not impressed' said the girl in the feathered dress
'What you say I bet you say to all the rest
Now it's time for me to get undressed so
Fly on home with your handsome feathered crest'
'Now wait a minute Albatross
I've built a lovely bed of moss
I'm sorry if I've made you cross
How 'bout fish- you catch, I'll toss!'
'How can you woo me if you can't even dance?
You move like you're awash in ants
I need more cans and no more can'ts
You should have worn your big boy pants'
He placed a wing on his beating heart
For fear it would break or fall apart
'I had the horse before the cart
And respectfully request a brand new start'
'Granted' said the lady of the hour
And believe me she was a delicious flower
So he drew himself up like a tower
Love coursed through his veins with power
'I love you Lady Al-bee-tross
Love you like the sun loves the sky
And if you'll just let me have this dance
I'll be true until we die'
She huffed and such and crossed her arms
Crossed them cross her breast
In response the young man danced
While puffing out his chest
No longer was the man a boy
No use had he for shiny toy
The only shine he now required
Was in the eye of his hearts desired
Before his love he deeply bowed
His love was now officially vowed
And she, the bird of feathered dress
Curtsied as she answered 'yes'
And off they flew, still fly today
All skies turned blue that once were gray
One hundred years and more at sea
He still loves her as she does he
Joseph John Racano
The Last Fish of the Hopeful Hearted
The sea was warm with a southerly current
Perhaps they were hiding, as a last ditch deterrent
They used to be here but now they weren't
This lack of marine life, I found it abhorrent
I searched and I sought, for there were none to be bought
Apparently everyone else had been caught
Was I really that smart or had I just been lucky
There wasn't a fish between here and Kentucky
I swished to the left and I whooshed to the right
Swam deep in the daytime and surfaced at night
At times I would see what I thought was a Bass
That turned out to be a big globular mass
A mass of entangled encrusted rope vine
Barnacles happy but smelling like brine
Hooks line and sinkers with lures still a-shine
But most of it just monofilament line
I called to the depths in my fishiest voice
'Hello down there' after all, what was my choice
This was the ocean's one last bit of noise
If doom was a car, this was a Rolls Royce
Come Wahoo and Yahoo and Grouper and Vixen
What will the natives hence forth be a-fixen
Where is the seafood chefs need for the kitchen
I'd better get back to my search and stop bitchin'
I swam passed Hawaii the water was warm
But lacking the usual migration swarm
There were tons of big squid lots of jellyfish too
But dammit, what was a fish lover to do
I stopped at the bottom and sat on an anchor
A squid made me room and I wanted to thank her
But I don't speak squiddish and I dont speak yiddish
I just shook my head and said, 'Looks like we're finished'
But just when it looked like the bad guys had won
Over-fished left me as the very last one
I heard something over my right starboard shoulder
A meek little voice that grew bolder and bolder
Clownfish! exclaimed my new best old ex girlfriend
Are you for real or a sign of the world's end?
I'm real, and it's me, and to you the same question
Is this really happening or just indigestion?
And soon came the swoon and the fins all entwined
By nightfall he had the girl all wined and dined
And the two of them swam off to parts yet uncharted
Leaving new hope in the now hopeful hearted
Joseph John Racano
2/20/17
Dedicated to this poor Wahoo, fastest fish in the water
Forty Thousand Homes
Long ago our neighborhood
stretched as far as the eye could see
Savannah and grassland, the home of the free
When we 'herd' a rumble, we knew where to go
Down into safety, from the passing buffalo
When the sky boomed with rolling thunder
We never were afraid; the open prairie caught the rain
and drank it in like minute maid
But one day came the rumbling of man and his machines
Bulldozers and backhoes causing havoc ridden scenes
They didn't even notice we were trampled underfoot
And just like that the prairie life was gone, fini, kaput
Forty thousand homes, forty thousand homes
Now cement and asphalt lays where once were prairie gnomes
Forty thousand families, Prairie dogs and grass
Great Black footed ferrets watched as it all came to pass
Farms gave way to cities, cities turned to slums
Everywhere a park had benches, benches had their bums
City slicker oil men who didn't give a care
Walked right by ignoring them with noses in the air
Then came twenty seventeen
the oil came home to roost
The stocks went up, the rain came down
Houston caught the juice
All that Donald Trump could do
was give cops back the arms
the ones the army didn't need
could now be used for harms
Harvey killed the same amount
as waters breached the ridge
As cops shot people in Katrina
trying to cross a bridge
Forty thousand homes
forty thousand homes
Now cement and asphalt lays
where once were prairie gnomes
Forty thousand families,
Prairie dogs and grass
Great Black footed ferrets
watched as it all came to pass
Now we hear complaining
as people have to leave
But what about the Prairie dog?
Who for him shall grieve?
Time to call development
by the name of its true mission:
Evil profiteers who
terraform without permission
Forty thousand homes
forty thousand homes
Now cement and asphalt lays
where once were prairie gnomes
Forty thousand families
Prairie dogs and grass
Great Black footed ferrets watched
as it all came to pass
Joseph John Racano
Salt of the Earth
In the Tonto Forest on the Great Salt River
A mighty old stallion narrowed eyes to a sliver
For there in the rapids was a filly in distress
A dangerous situation only he could address
The old wild west as we knew it is gone
But in a few secret places, the magic goes on
In the wilds of Arizona, the Salt River Herd
Is led by stallions running free as a bird
The big bad men in the stiff dark suits
Stripping back the land among other pursuits
Staked a claim on the herd, Mustangs and all
All would be rounded up and gone by fall
But the people of the town are the salt of the earth
Every single one knew what the horses were worth
They strategized, organized, wore their hearts on their sleeves
Soon became as numerous as chest high leaves
The Salt River Horses got a bill of their own
The leaders called them treasure and said 'leave them alone'
Now and for the future you can go and see
First-hand how the land used to be
And as for the stallion and the drowning filly
He grabbed her by the mane (it was wet and chilly)
He pulled her from the current she was up and gone
Her shaky legs took her on a bee-line to her mom
All the horses celebrated, shouting 'neigh!'
Dancing on two legs beneath the river spray
Wild as the wind and free as a bird
The Tonto National Forest Salt River Herd
Joseph John Racano
In the Tonto Forest on the Great Salt River
A mighty old stallion narrowed eyes to a sliver
For there in the rapids was a filly in distress
A dangerous situation only he could address
The old wild west as we knew it is gone
But in a few secret places, the magic goes on
In the wilds of Arizona, the Salt River Herd
Is led by stallions running free as a bird
The big bad men in the stiff dark suits
Stripping back the land among other pursuits
Staked a claim on the herd, Mustangs and all
All would be rounded up and gone by fall
But the people of the town are the salt of the earth
Every single one knew what the horses were worth
They strategized, organized, wore their hearts on their sleeves
Soon became as numerous as chest high leaves
The Salt River Horses got a bill of their own
The leaders called them treasure and said 'leave them alone'
Now and for the future you can go and see
First-hand how the land used to be
And as for the stallion and the drowning filly
He grabbed her by the mane (it was wet and chilly)
He pulled her from the current she was up and gone
Her shaky legs took her on a bee-line to her mom
All the horses celebrated, shouting 'neigh!'
Dancing on two legs beneath the river spray
Wild as the wind and free as a bird
The Tonto National Forest Salt River Herd
Joseph John Racano
One Shot at Freedom
Courageous Lion in a brave new world
Rarely smiles when his lips are curled
King of the jungle with no place to be
In a land that wants security
Gone are the spaces where the big cats roam
People painting faces in their jungle home
Buffalo are slaughtered leaving Yellowstone park
There can be no safety meeting lions in the dark
Every mountain has its tiger said the wise Han-Shan
In a world of safety they will soon be gone
Tax dollars poison yet another wolf pup
We've fallen out of balance and we can't stand up
Holding back the darkness with security lights
Trading in the sequins of our starriest nights
How safe and how secure should people want to be
What value has a world where lions can't run free
Joseph John Racano
The Beginning
(a poem for Easter)
The Last stone has fallen
No more division
Through cracks in the pavement
The Spirit has risen
Abaddon and friends
Have been kicked in the keister
The gray sidewalk ends
On the day we call Easter
The last wall of Jericho
Has fallen to dust
Exxon of Babylon
Now only rust
The nave it was cold
The grasses are soft
Come pick yellow roses
And hold them aloft
The seedling long trampled
By uncaring feet
Breaks through to the sunlight
His lover to meet
Her tears of joy
Come showering down
The delicate seedling
Grows tall from the ground
And stands not alone
But in university
Every one calling in
Biodiversity
-The Beginning
Joseph John Racano
Watch the Rain
Now bring on the rain
A sweeping, weeping rain
Wake the sleeping rivers
Wash the grizzly’s mane
Singing frogs foretell of flood
Warning crawfish in the mud
Launch the logs to points downstream
Complete the busy beaver’s dream
Move ye fishers off the bank
There where General Jackson sank
Rafters lift your oars to steer
No Mark Twain to be found here
Bring the rain, cascading rain
Gusting winds on weather vane
El Nino’ come to ease our pain
Who knows when he will again
Crank the handles charge the phones
Fill the sand bags, set the cones
Check the wipers, change the diapers
Wear tall boots to fend off vipers
Din is in, drought is out
Rainbow prism water spout
Leaky roof without a plumber
Fill the barrels for the summer
Whistling teapot, cream and sugar
Blow that nose and wipe that booger
Gather at the window pane
Let’s sit back and watch the rain!
Joseph John Racano
3/4/16
Los Osos Gray Fox
On the evening of Christmas
I lay flush on my bed
At the new day’s fourth hour
And so in he sped
A shadow of sorts
With graceful aplomb
I watched in dark silence
From there in my room
A cat was less cunning
Coyote too large
More dancing than running
Yet in did he barge
I left him a silhouette
My porch light too bold
Some type of puppy
One not very old
He stood for a moment
Full Moon fully profiled
Moving like Anna Pavlova
But gone wild
My eyes drank him in
And my soul slaked its thirst
A Los Osos Gray Fox
And he was my first
He didn’t stay long
Never saw me directly
Watching a Fox
Requires acting correctly
I blended as he did
With shadows and light
I felt like a Fox
And perhaps I was right
And so for those moments
I bathed in his riches
I left him alone
Never turned on the switches
And then off he went
Just as quick as he’d come
With more of a dance
More of a prance
More a Gray Fox romance
than a run
Joseph John Racano
12/26/15
Return of the Spirit-Wolf
Return of the Wolf
Return of the spirit
Howl at the moon
and creator will hear it
Ninety one years
Western stars have rung hollow
With no Wolf to lead
there are no wolves to follow
Back in the plan with
Green fire-eyed fury
To hunt by the light
of the Alpha Centauri
Healer of woods
Of Great plains and prairie
Trophic cascade
Elk are once again wary
The stones have cried out
California receives you
Our land has dried out
and it desperately needs you
Joseph John Racano
Secret at Dawn
In that part of day that comes just before morning
When curtain of mist is thrown back for the dawning
There without fail is my friend on a quest
He gives my heart reason to beat in my chest
Ghost in the fog, a wraithe in the bog
Spectre, a vision, a hunter at jog
Hound of the Baskervilles, weaver of many skills
Changeling, a strange thing in hollow of log
Our spirits are crossed as two thieves in the night
To be more specific just wouldn’t be right
When speaking of him I need always be vague
For some want to see him wiped out like a plague
The blood of the canine runs deep in my veins
A stray dog myself I feel all of his pains
When I hear the howling my hairs stand on end
And all of the pain in the world starts to mend
Ghost in the fog, wraithe in the bog
Spectre, a vision, a hunter at jog
Hound of the Baskervilles, weaver of many skills
Changeling, a strange thing in hollow of log
If life was a mystery writ in the skies
I know it would start in the coals of your eyes
And use them to burn away shadows and veils
At campfire dots in a valley of tales
Connecting the ancient, the old and the new
Peace when I finally lay down in the dew
Your prints on the meadow the manuscript of Earth
We must learn to read them for clues to our birth
Ghost in the fog, a wraithe in the bog
Spectre, a vision, a hunter at jog
Hound of the Baskervilles, weaver of many skills
Changeling, a strange thing in hollow of log
Remove all illusion in a world of confusion
Your blood is the wild and we need a transfusion
Ember eyes glowing, shaggy tail flowing
Long loping gait at the gate of all knowing
Hound of the Baskervilles
Proof of the Master’s skills
Howling on top of hills
Backlit by moonlight
Meet before daylight
Joseph John Racano
7/6/15
The Painted People
Don't call us, we'll call you
Your flying thing brings the Hong Kong Flu
Don't come here, we'll come there
We don't want your underwear
Drop us things and we'll just burn 'em
Your words suck and we won't learn 'em
You've got crosses, we've got orchids
Don't teach us what you taught your kids
Don't fly down, we'll climb up
We mate for life with no pre-nup
You've got cars, we've got fronds
Wash our babes in clean clear ponds
Don't send planes in by the dozen
It's not a fire, I'm talking with my cousin
Even if it was, don't salvage logs
Hollow ones are home to frogs
Don't bring housing roads and dams
Father Forest wants no plans
Let the Painted people play
In our old ancestral way
Joseph John Racano
Don't call us, we'll call you
Your flying thing brings the Hong Kong Flu
Don't come here, we'll come there
We don't want your underwear
Drop us things and we'll just burn 'em
Your words suck and we won't learn 'em
You've got crosses, we've got orchids
Don't teach us what you taught your kids
Don't fly down, we'll climb up
We mate for life with no pre-nup
You've got cars, we've got fronds
Wash our babes in clean clear ponds
Don't send planes in by the dozen
It's not a fire, I'm talking with my cousin
Even if it was, don't salvage logs
Hollow ones are home to frogs
Don't bring housing roads and dams
Father Forest wants no plans
Let the Painted people play
In our old ancestral way
Joseph John Racano
Sandra and Trinka
Land of the Skunk
Welcome, my friend to the land of the skunk
Where things stink much worse than you’ve ever known stunk
Alas, I must warn it’s no place for a punk
Quite often it ends with a bathtub ker-plunk
But worse than a 3 a.m. bath in commode
Is when they’re mistaken for stripes in the road
A sniper with teargas in defensive mode
Up goes his tail when he’s set to explode
In skunk land not everything’s just black and white
A smell doesn’t tell if you’re wrong or you’re right
Sometimes we cry in the dark of the night
At what makes us laugh in the new morning light
So try to be patient in skunk land, my friend
Use common sense and avoid that rear end
But if you are hit with that liquid they send
A tomato juice bath will put you on the mend
photo: Sandra and Trinka, 3:00 a.m.
(special thanx to my Sandra for being a good sport and letting me use this picture)
Land of the Skunk
Welcome, my friend to the land of the skunk
Where things stink much worse than you’ve ever known stunk
Alas, I must warn it’s no place for a punk
Quite often it ends with a bathtub ker-plunk
But worse than a 3 a.m. bath in commode
Is when they’re mistaken for stripes in the road
A sniper with teargas in defensive mode
Up goes his tail when he’s set to explode
In skunk land not everything’s just black and white
A smell doesn’t tell if you’re wrong or you’re right
Sometimes we cry in the dark of the night
At what makes us laugh in the new morning light
So try to be patient in skunk land, my friend
Use common sense and avoid that rear end
But if you are hit with that liquid they send
A tomato juice bath will put you on the mend
photo: Sandra and Trinka, 3:00 a.m.
(special thanx to my Sandra for being a good sport and letting me use this picture)
Birdseed Man
Can please somebody help me?
I'm stuck inside a feeder
Never been a meater no
I've always been a seeder
Climbed in through a little hole
And now I can't get out
Ate up all the birdseed
And my belly's gotten stout
True I'm not a genius
IQ of 64
But why the heck can I not use
The hole I used before?
My brother is embarrassed
My sister wants to cry
The glass is getting foggy and
Our mouths are getting dry
Someone call the birdseed man
He and I are stable
Once I stole his walnut but
Left something on the table
Get up on my shoulders
Or I'll get up on yours
Sometimes fancy feeders have
A couple extra doors
Pretty cool invention
Until it traps your ass
Try to draw attention
He can see us through the glass
This time we were lucky
Birdseed man is cool
Everybody jump and run
We're late as hell for school!
Joseph John Racano
5/10/15
Can please somebody help me?
I'm stuck inside a feeder
Never been a meater no
I've always been a seeder
Climbed in through a little hole
And now I can't get out
Ate up all the birdseed
And my belly's gotten stout
True I'm not a genius
IQ of 64
But why the heck can I not use
The hole I used before?
My brother is embarrassed
My sister wants to cry
The glass is getting foggy and
Our mouths are getting dry
Someone call the birdseed man
He and I are stable
Once I stole his walnut but
Left something on the table
Get up on my shoulders
Or I'll get up on yours
Sometimes fancy feeders have
A couple extra doors
Pretty cool invention
Until it traps your ass
Try to draw attention
He can see us through the glass
This time we were lucky
Birdseed man is cool
Everybody jump and run
We're late as hell for school!
Joseph John Racano
5/10/15
My Favorite Marlin
Out in the sea lives a family of fish
Who carry a sword 'cause they know they're delish
At first unassuming, they're humble as sand
Easy to fit in the palm of your hand
But then they start growing and some learn to sail
Believe me you don't want to piss off the male
Striped like a tiger defending his darlin'
This is the story of one such Black Marlin
Beautiful, graceful, a giant was he
But never aggressive, just wild and free
One day he decided to sunbathe and float
Completely ignoring three men in a boat
They came from the city with bright colored shirts
Sharpened their hooks, never mind how it hurts
Chumming the water and baiting a line
One strapped in a chair thinking 'everything's fine'
Chugging bud lite, the men started to dribble
That's when the lady-fish took her first nibble
'No!' said Black Marlin, and pushed her away
He chomped on the bait saying, 'you wanna play?'
'Got one!' the businessman said to his charter
Then the Black Marlin swam harder and harder
Fishing reel screamed and the smoke started rising
One shook his head and said, 'that is surprising'
Fisherman came to the end of his line
His reel was a blur and continued to whine
Heavy gauge fishing pole started to bend
Somehow Black Marlin knew it was the end
Mrs. Black Marlin just marvelled in awe
Realizing what in advance he had saw
Here she was nursing a Black Marlin pup
And almost a photo of her hanging up
The fish came about, swimming straight for their boat
The crew started gathering things that would float
Mr. Black Marlin would teach them a lesson
His sword was the judge and court now was in session
At 51 miles an hour and closing
Businessman stopped all his fishing and posing
Last photographed with his legs in the air
Unbuckling out of his big fighting chair
Marlin went airborne with swivel and link
Over the stern as it started to sink
Two thousand pounds, 50 miles per hour
Fishing boats just weren't built for such power
The boat is now sitting in Davey Jones' Locker
Never again would a fishing crew dock 'er
The pole was removed from the anglers behind
And Mr. and Mrs. Black Marlin are fine
Joseph John Racano
5/8/15
Out in the sea lives a family of fish
Who carry a sword 'cause they know they're delish
At first unassuming, they're humble as sand
Easy to fit in the palm of your hand
But then they start growing and some learn to sail
Believe me you don't want to piss off the male
Striped like a tiger defending his darlin'
This is the story of one such Black Marlin
Beautiful, graceful, a giant was he
But never aggressive, just wild and free
One day he decided to sunbathe and float
Completely ignoring three men in a boat
They came from the city with bright colored shirts
Sharpened their hooks, never mind how it hurts
Chumming the water and baiting a line
One strapped in a chair thinking 'everything's fine'
Chugging bud lite, the men started to dribble
That's when the lady-fish took her first nibble
'No!' said Black Marlin, and pushed her away
He chomped on the bait saying, 'you wanna play?'
'Got one!' the businessman said to his charter
Then the Black Marlin swam harder and harder
Fishing reel screamed and the smoke started rising
One shook his head and said, 'that is surprising'
Fisherman came to the end of his line
His reel was a blur and continued to whine
Heavy gauge fishing pole started to bend
Somehow Black Marlin knew it was the end
Mrs. Black Marlin just marvelled in awe
Realizing what in advance he had saw
Here she was nursing a Black Marlin pup
And almost a photo of her hanging up
The fish came about, swimming straight for their boat
The crew started gathering things that would float
Mr. Black Marlin would teach them a lesson
His sword was the judge and court now was in session
At 51 miles an hour and closing
Businessman stopped all his fishing and posing
Last photographed with his legs in the air
Unbuckling out of his big fighting chair
Marlin went airborne with swivel and link
Over the stern as it started to sink
Two thousand pounds, 50 miles per hour
Fishing boats just weren't built for such power
The boat is now sitting in Davey Jones' Locker
Never again would a fishing crew dock 'er
The pole was removed from the anglers behind
And Mr. and Mrs. Black Marlin are fine
Joseph John Racano
5/8/15
Lady Widow Walking
Lady Widow Walking
Halfway ‘cross the street
Prone to passing tire or
The sole of someone’s feet
Out here in the sunshine
Where you do not belong
I use my cup to scoop you up
Or you would not last long
Lady widow glistening
Shiny as the stars
Let me overcome my fear
And save you from the cars
Legs like Betty Grable
Bodice black as night
Hourglass tattoo counts down
The time ‘till deadly bite
But I won’t hurt a lady
Such Arachnid royalty
Lady widow spider
To the woodpile I give thee
Joseph John Racano
Lady Widow Walking
Halfway ‘cross the street
Prone to passing tire or
The sole of someone’s feet
Out here in the sunshine
Where you do not belong
I use my cup to scoop you up
Or you would not last long
Lady widow glistening
Shiny as the stars
Let me overcome my fear
And save you from the cars
Legs like Betty Grable
Bodice black as night
Hourglass tattoo counts down
The time ‘till deadly bite
But I won’t hurt a lady
Such Arachnid royalty
Lady widow spider
To the woodpile I give thee
Joseph John Racano
Fragile Blue Earth
Spin through the cosmos, oh Fragile Blue Earth
Strangely benevolent world of my birth
If it would heal your great seas and your lands
I’d offer my heart while it beat in my hands
When my lifeless body melts into your musk
To lay beside Mammoth and spoon with his tusk
So gladly I die knowing every last morsel
Returns to the fold, perhaps somebody’s dorsal
To Fragile Blue Earth do I swear my allegiance
And I will defend you against evil legions
Who look at the beauty but see only malls
I promise to answer those meekest of calls
I suckle your breast never taking for granted
The life-giving trees you so kindly have planted
And if I must suffer the fools who would rape you
Please take my tears that they might irrigate you
So spin through the cosmos, oh Fragile Blue Earth
I thank you for being my planet of birth
And when you disperse and your sun fades away
Know that our love in the cosmos will stay
Joseph John Racano
Ravens watch over Carrizo Plain
Ravens watch over Carrizo Plain
Dry Soda Lake hasn’t had any rain
A timeless and beautiful chalky expanse
Where Rattlesnakes teach all the Pronghorn to dance
Every ear rings from a silence so strange
As sunrise comes over the Temblor Range
Air is as sweet as the Meadowlark's song
A valley concerto, fifty miles long
Colored like orcas, the Loggerhead Shrikes
Impale the poor lizards on barbed wire spikes
And doey-eyed squirrels named after San Jo
Watch tumbleweeds circle above in a blow
Ravens watch out over Carrizo Plain
To make sure it isn’t assaulted again
The wrong place for solar, the right place for snakes
San Andreas Fault standing ready with quakes
Squeezing the Temblor Range up toward the sky
Though all is quite still to the temporal eye
Somewhere through eons may the rock record show
For one instant of time we were part of the flow
Joseph John Racano
4/17/15
Ravens watch over Carrizo Plain
Dry Soda Lake hasn’t had any rain
A timeless and beautiful chalky expanse
Where Rattlesnakes teach all the Pronghorn to dance
Every ear rings from a silence so strange
As sunrise comes over the Temblor Range
Air is as sweet as the Meadowlark's song
A valley concerto, fifty miles long
Colored like orcas, the Loggerhead Shrikes
Impale the poor lizards on barbed wire spikes
And doey-eyed squirrels named after San Jo
Watch tumbleweeds circle above in a blow
Ravens watch out over Carrizo Plain
To make sure it isn’t assaulted again
The wrong place for solar, the right place for snakes
San Andreas Fault standing ready with quakes
Squeezing the Temblor Range up toward the sky
Though all is quite still to the temporal eye
Somewhere through eons may the rock record show
For one instant of time we were part of the flow
Joseph John Racano
4/17/15
The New York Tigers
Nothing was left in the jungle
The Tigers were stripes over bones
So they came to New York to eat people
already consumed by their phones
The ocean was barren of fishes
The maritime cupboard was bare
The Sea Lions had empty dishes
But greedy old man did not care
Then nature struck back with a vengeance
The predators learned how to fish
By finding a boat beneath which to float
And stealing whatever they wish
Even the Sperm Whales began it
Took Codfish right off of the hook
But unlike great Moby who'd ram it
Swam off to find somewhere to cook
The gentle turned into the cunning
Killer became all the bees
The folks for their lives were all running
No climbing, they cut all the trees
Dog catchers ran out of bullets
And elephants stomped them to death
Lions moved into Manhattan
People from Queens on their breath
Sea Lions in San Diego
Started a campaign of bites
Decided they wouldn't let fish go
To people who dangled from kites
The whole operation world over
Had left all the animals thin
and when they all realized their peril
said, "let the eating of humans begin!"
The Tigers cleaned out the five boroughs
New York was just never the same
In something like Edgar Rice Burroughs
The cities drew moths to the flame
Now here we are many years later
The balance again has been struck
The swimming pools all have a gator
The Garden of Eden unstuck
Joseph John Racano
One True Maharaja
Great and Mighty Elephant
Your long curved tusk
So like Woolly Mammoth
In his Pleistocene musk
Smarter than a sophist
Wiser than a sage
Trunk so full of wisdom
No one knows your age
Olifant remembers
Myriad Septembers
Logging ancient forest
Wearing caterpillar fenders
Uno grande de La Raza
Take me to the Casbah
Great and mighty Gajah
The One True Maharaja
Joseph John Racano
Great and Mighty Elephant
Your long curved tusk
So like Woolly Mammoth
In his Pleistocene musk
Smarter than a sophist
Wiser than a sage
Trunk so full of wisdom
No one knows your age
Olifant remembers
Myriad Septembers
Logging ancient forest
Wearing caterpillar fenders
Uno grande de La Raza
Take me to the Casbah
Great and mighty Gajah
The One True Maharaja
Joseph John Racano
Coyote in Chicago
Mister Trickster in the city
Moved in right next door
Please skooch over just a bit
I'm trying to mop the floor
Cousin Wiley, you're so smiley
Sniff the bake shop baking
Ride the bus along with us
Now what are you taking
You're so cute in that gray suit
I could never hurt you
I'd rather die than see you cry
and no I won't desert you
I'm so glad that you moved in
Now you're my favorite neighbor
Don't be shy just stop on by
For sugar or a favor
Joseph John Racano
Mister Trickster in the city
Moved in right next door
Please skooch over just a bit
I'm trying to mop the floor
Cousin Wiley, you're so smiley
Sniff the bake shop baking
Ride the bus along with us
Now what are you taking
You're so cute in that gray suit
I could never hurt you
I'd rather die than see you cry
and no I won't desert you
I'm so glad that you moved in
Now you're my favorite neighbor
Don't be shy just stop on by
For sugar or a favor
Joseph John Racano
Happy Trickster
Happy trickster, that's Coyote
Saw him when I dropped peyote
Laying there in bed with me
Sound asleep and dreaming free
Toes were twitching, he was running
Some fool redneck out there gunning
Left his paw prints on the track
Walked on leaves and doubled back
Happy trickster ears akimbo
Living life in constant limbo
Hunted trapped reviled and hated
So under appreciated
Watch him prance amid the grasses
Sneak amid the sleeping masses
Got Coyote? I say thank it
Let him use your favorite blanket
Joseph John Racano
Happy trickster, that's Coyote
Saw him when I dropped peyote
Laying there in bed with me
Sound asleep and dreaming free
Toes were twitching, he was running
Some fool redneck out there gunning
Left his paw prints on the track
Walked on leaves and doubled back
Happy trickster ears akimbo
Living life in constant limbo
Hunted trapped reviled and hated
So under appreciated
Watch him prance amid the grasses
Sneak amid the sleeping masses
Got Coyote? I say thank it
Let him use your favorite blanket
Joseph John Racano
Feathered Royalty
Feathered Jaguar of the skies
Eats his lunch when something dies
Talons like a sharpened needle
High notes like a sharp-shinned Beatle
Flying Leopard of the air
Captured lightning in his stare
Wearing Aztec serpent plumes
Sends unwary to their tombs
Like Jupiter, the son of Saturn
Accipiter wears a tigers pattern
Clutching prey in mortal embrace
Kiss of death from a terminal face
But for gloves, you strafe my hand
But for size, the promised land
Terrible beauty, o'er head screams
Awake -I leave you in my dreams
Joseph John Racano
*Stuck in the chicken coop, released as royalty (Accipiter Striatus)
Kiss of the Wolf
On the coldest of days in a valley of frost
My weakness of spirit was finally lost
When Lobo allowed me a glimpse at the cost
Of living a life without he who was boss
Allowed for a moment return to the land
Great wolf left his track on the snow covered sand
Unleashing a torrent of trees with his brand
In turn, bringing birdsong, the forests' own band
He met with the elk and he laid out the rules
Travel in herds or you all die like fools
Trees held the soil who used them like tools
Even the rivers were straightened with pools
Lobo looked out on the landscape he made
Suddenly healed in a trophic cascade
Hunt with me brothers, to others he bade
Just as the winters' day started to fade
After the kill they all howled at the moon
Singing together an old fashioned tune
Applauded discreetly by rabbit and 'coon
They slept through the day, they would hunt again soon
Kiss of the Wolf is the salve we all need
A shortcut back home to a world without greed
Where hunters kill only to live or to feed
And species are seamless in word and in deed
Joseph John Racano
a-Whooooooo!
Hummingbird Sage
Hummingbird Sage, you're all the rage
In the book of my life, you're on the very first page
Is that sugar or honey- you smell so funny!
As long as you're around it doesn't matter if it's sunny
Hummingbird Sage, 'gainst a Silver Lupine backdrop
Magic of the Mage, you conquer all surrounding blacktop
Your perfume-scented flower takes me on a sacred journey
With sweet unbridled power to unstrap us from our gurney
Waterfall of sunshine raining down as fuchsia pink
Hummingbird adores you, so much smarter than we think
Many days your nectar fuels his wing-beats by the mile
Hence I come to understand the Hummers knowing smile
Blossom, washed-out scarlet, 'till your flowers match the sky
Throw your shadow on the garden, make the roses cry
Never has a scent like yours bewitched me from the start
Thrust your neon flower like a dagger in my heart
Joseph John Racano
photo (above): Racano
Hummingbird Sage, you're all the rage
In the book of my life, you're on the very first page
Is that sugar or honey- you smell so funny!
As long as you're around it doesn't matter if it's sunny
Hummingbird Sage, 'gainst a Silver Lupine backdrop
Magic of the Mage, you conquer all surrounding blacktop
Your perfume-scented flower takes me on a sacred journey
With sweet unbridled power to unstrap us from our gurney
Waterfall of sunshine raining down as fuchsia pink
Hummingbird adores you, so much smarter than we think
Many days your nectar fuels his wing-beats by the mile
Hence I come to understand the Hummers knowing smile
Blossom, washed-out scarlet, 'till your flowers match the sky
Throw your shadow on the garden, make the roses cry
Never has a scent like yours bewitched me from the start
Thrust your neon flower like a dagger in my heart
Joseph John Racano
photo (above): Racano
photo: Racano
Woody the Woodpecker
Woody was a Woodpecker
Fresh out of the nest
Clinging to an oak tree branch
he held against his chest
With siblings flying everywhere
Crows chasing them around
Woody stayed as still as stone
staring at the ground
His cammo was protection-
he looked just like the trees
I took my little camera and
I asked him to say 'cheese!'
Woody was a shy one
He never made a sound
He wouldn't even look at me
quite mad that he'd been found
But I would not betray him
A bird like that is rare
Before too long I turned away
It's just too rude to stare!
Joseph John Racano
Woody the Woodpecker
Woody was a Woodpecker
Fresh out of the nest
Clinging to an oak tree branch
he held against his chest
With siblings flying everywhere
Crows chasing them around
Woody stayed as still as stone
staring at the ground
His cammo was protection-
he looked just like the trees
I took my little camera and
I asked him to say 'cheese!'
Woody was a shy one
He never made a sound
He wouldn't even look at me
quite mad that he'd been found
But I would not betray him
A bird like that is rare
Before too long I turned away
It's just too rude to stare!
Joseph John Racano
photo: Racano
Silver Lupine
Lupine, sweet Lupine, you comfort the dunes
Velvety, fragrant blue flower festoons
Deeply your tap root communes with the Earth
Butterfly twin separated at birth
Silver Dune Lupine, couture of the sands
Reaching for fawns with your silvery hands
Friend to the doe and you will be forever
Cotton ball nursery hiding her treasure
Steely blue butterflies dance in your arms
Coastal salt breezes abscond with your charms
Thriving in climes where most others would fail
Long may our Silver Dune Lupine prevail
Joseph John Racano
Silver Lupine
Lupine, sweet Lupine, you comfort the dunes
Velvety, fragrant blue flower festoons
Deeply your tap root communes with the Earth
Butterfly twin separated at birth
Silver Dune Lupine, couture of the sands
Reaching for fawns with your silvery hands
Friend to the doe and you will be forever
Cotton ball nursery hiding her treasure
Steely blue butterflies dance in your arms
Coastal salt breezes abscond with your charms
Thriving in climes where most others would fail
Long may our Silver Dune Lupine prevail
Joseph John Racano
Sacred Unions
The year of the horse runs its course
through valleys filled with snow
Distant cries fill Northern skies
and Borealis begins to glow
A hunters moon sheds its gold cocoon
and wolves begin to howl
The equinox opens up its box
for the solar winds to growl
Aurora slashes and her light storm flashes
taming a dark expanse
Her twin down south uses a fiery mouth
to encapsulate the worlds romance
Far below in the land of snow
the gathering of the pack
A timeless game that always ends the same
when the wolves begin to track
A signal here and a silence there
Hooves slow in a powdery snow
The quiet turns to din as the pack closes in
Led above by the raven and crow
Auroura Borealis entwines with the Australis
Sunlight making love in the ionosphere
A Wolf in his palace, kills without malice
Behold these Sacred Unions of the Atmosphere
Joseph John Racano
Redwood Soul
Deep inside the forest on the River Mattole
I got the deepest feeling in the depths of my soul
Where the Redwoods were kissed by an old growth mist
that struck me to the quick like an Earthfirst! fist
My dogs turned to wolves, my heart into a salmon
It must have been the spirit of the monks in the cabin
And a Monastery there, that made such honey
impossible to duplicate, no matter what the money
An overwhelming freshness delivered on a breeze
Clinging like the moss to the Redwood trees
The water was swift, the trees were a gift
Everything about it was a welcome lift
Thank you, Father Forest; thank you Mother Earth,
I promise to protect you, for I know your worth
You don't belong to me, but rather, I belong to you
Someday I will return, as I long to do
Joseph John Racano
State Central Committee Delegate
California Democratic Party
Author, Heritage Tree State Resolution
California Democratic State Convention
Accepted by the Delegation, March 17, 2003
Thank you Mr. Snake
Thank you Thank you Mr Snake
The longest thinnest friend they make
I like your eyes I love your tongue
I've known your scent since I was young
You hide from hawk you eat a frog
We met today at willow bog
I read your markings, black on tan
We left at peace, both snake and man
Joseph John Racano
Bear Shit
Bear Shit Bear shit, it’s a very fair shit
Bear Shit where shit some right over there shit
Is it filled with berries? It looks just like a pie
Call up Ben & Jerry's- I think they oughta try
Bear Shit Bear shit- they don't wear underwear it
wouldn't be conducive, their scat is so exclusive
Bear Shit Bear shit, 'I don't have a care' shit
Poop scat cocky doo- what's a mamma bear to do?
Every time she cleans it up, she finds another pile of goo!
Crap Shit, lot's of it- never get a chance to sit
There's the proof- got the goods-
A Bear most certainly does shit in the woods
Bear Shit Bear shit- there's another pile of it
Huckleberry blackberry, somehow strangely sanitary
Strawberry blueberry, color-of-the-rainbow berry
Source of fuel, dung beetles gruel
Check your shoes on the way to school
Smells so sweet like shredded wheat
Check before you take a seat
Getting up is hard on the knees
and we might have to run from bees!
Bear Shit Bear shit, never-have-a-care shit
Bear shit where shit, some-right-over-there shit
Never comes in pear shit
Don't do it in the lair shit
One last chance to defecate
Now it's time to (yawn)
hibernate
Joseph John Racano
The Amazing Mr. Stickbug
Dear Mr Stickbug
You're not a very thick bug
But you're better than a Tick bug
who is really quite an 'ick' bug
No I'll never hurt you
when the leaves and twigs desert you
and I won't hurt ticky either
Even he deserves a breather
Go on now Mr Stickbug
amazing Mr Trick bug
I thought you were a stick!
And please take your friend, the tick!
Joseph John Racano
The Fluffy Bandito
The Fluffy Bandito who comes out at four
brought five fluffy presents to my sliding glass door
I let down my guard; my defenses apart
allowed five furry cuteballs to abscond with my heart
"Banditos wearing masks!" was all I could report
and five of the six were still too young for court
So they stood in a lineup, and I recognized one-
their sweet loving mama, by the crook in her thumb
"Why did you do it?" I asked
She said, "Dude, you started it all when you put out the food."
I knew she was right, but it didn't seem fair
No heart is a match for striped puff balls of hair
When the detective asked me if that was the one,
I simply said "No- I can tell by the thumb"
And they say to this day, when the moon is on high
and clouds shaped like stallions stampede through the sky
that the Fluffy Bandito comes to my back door
comes 'round about four
comes crunching
comes crunching
comes munching
Joseph John Racano
Consider the Butterfly
Consider the Butterfly
The Morro Blue Butterfly
when next her steely blue wings chance to flutter by
Likewise the Lupine, the Silver Dune Lupine
Mother Blue Butterfly raises her troupe in
Also the dune-scape
Morro Bay dune-scape
Where Morro Blue Butterflies float on a moon-scape
Don't forget flowers, perennial flowers
Lovely in bloom, awaiting cool showers
And finally, the fortune, the very good fortune
there is such a place to sit on your porch in
So, do thank the butterfly, the Morro Blue Butterfly
Thank her for being a good friend and coming by
Joseph John Racano
photo: Racano
Blue Jay
Blue Jay yak-chatter
Blue Jay fly
Dive-bomb a cat
from an azure sky
East coast uniform
Scrub Jay, west
Crest of a Stellar Jay
I like best
Blue Jay fly
over Blue Jay Pond
Once, twice, thrice
and the Blue Jay's gone!
Joseph John Racano
Chance Meeting with a Red-Legged Frog
Tired of dancing the Bristol Stomp
I decided to saunter into the swamp
Taking refuge by a hollow log
I had a chance meeting with a Red-legged Frog
who shared with me his stein of grog
of which I drank 'till in a fog
He helped me back into the street
but I kept on stepping on his big webbed feet
He got so mad he started to cry
but stopped long enough to tongue a fly
"Remind me never to ask you for a dance"
said the frog as he helped pull up my sagging pants
"Oh dear" said I as he gulped another fly
“It’s not too often that I get this high!"
"Cheerio" said the frog, my new amphibian friend
"This is a silly poem that's about to end"
"We're about to part, but before we do
let me leave these words of wisdom with you
When the ozone's through and the frogs are gone
man will have a tough go carrying on
And when salamanders grow three extra legs
humans will find themselves deep in dreggs
It's not too late but theres a lot to do
to return the lakes sea and skies to blue
So lets make a pact to begin right here
and we'll meet to renew it every year
at the Tiger Salamanders vernal pool
where the sun is hot but the water's cool”
"Its a deal!" said I
as I leap-frogged home
"Very well," said the Frog,
"Here, take this poem!"
Joseph John Racano
The Time is Now
Calling every boy and girl
Now it’s time to save the world
Pick your clothes up clean your rooms
Pack a lunch and bring your brooms
You can start right where you are
Show mom an electric car
Let her know they don’t need gas
Tell your dad they’re really fast
At the bus stop have some fun
Tell your bus to run on sun
When at school don’t act aloof
Lobby for a solar roof
Use less plastic use less bags
Save at thrift stores check the tags
When you leave your phones at home
5-G leaves our bees alone
Help your neighbors always smile
Keep the heat low on the dial
Eat organic don’t waste food
Help improve somebody’s mood
Feed the birds be nice to trees
Volunteer to clean the seas
Don’t be wasteful sew your pants
When you can don’t step on ants
As the weeks go by you’ll see
Other people saying, ‘gee-
Maybe I should be like you’
Soon they’re out there saving too
Anyone who says we can’t
Probably never had a plant
Buy them one for any reason
Watch them change within a season
Write a letter to the press
Sure to use the right address
Grow in knowledge use the facts
Say it matters how one acts
It’s not hard to change the world
Just stay upbeat boys and girls
Make new friends and show them how
The time to save the world is now
Joseph John Racano
Photo: Racano
Black Powder on Red
Black Powder on Red
Now I’ll never get to bed
Without visions of your flutter-bys
Dancing in my head
Did you have to be so fancy
So delicate, demure
Designed by The Great Artist
To be the embodiment of pure
Solar powered wraith
Tiny sun on the wing
Any fool could listen
And hear the cosmos sing
Enflap me with your cotton embrace
Let your colored powders decorate my face
When you’re ready and at your own pace
Let me share it with the human race
Black Powder on Ruby red
Coconuts and cream
I’ll wait for you beside my bed
Tonight you’ll be my dream
I’ll await your gentle landing
I’ll listen for your wings
If this is too demanding
I am prone to foolish things
I only ask you stay the night
And help me count the sheep
Stay as long as is polite
‘till I fall off to sleep
And when the day awakens
And sunshine brings the dawn
I won’t look beside me
I will know that you are gone
Joseph John Racano
Photography by Rosemarie S. Herrera
Ancient Message in the Painted Desert
Ancient message in the Painted Desert
It sure strikes home when a petroglyph says it
I checked the e mails and I checked the phone
But it was a thousand years later when I checked the stone
I pored over the rock for marks and clues
It seemed to be an alien singing the blues
A galaxy spiraled off to one side
of a stick figure wedding where the girl stick cried
A moon hung over this very same valley
as an artist carved figures, a numeric tally
A thousand years later I could only imagine
The stars shining down in a primitive fashion
With a palm frond brush and a stash of ochre
The figures of a person, an alien and a joker
Were painted on the boulder at the bottom of a wash
That now grew only cactus but perhaps once, squash
I finally took a picture so I later might decipher
The message in the rock from a previous lifer
Intended for a futuristic man like me
To come along with smart phone and with eyes to see
And high atop the mountain stood the Eagle of Gold
Watching far below the short encounter unfold
Then to fly away and bring my message back
Carried with his talons in a gunny sack
Joseph John Racano
Nature Class
Roll me down the flower carpet
Gentle sloping green escarpment
Push my nose into the grass
Mother Nature’s nature class
Tour the hillside using gravity
No more john deere lawn depravity
Let the growing flowers grow
Intermittent showers flow
Vital is the hornet’s sting
Bumblebee is on the wing
The tears we shed last but a minute
This his field and we are in it
At the bottom, vernal pool
Welcome to eternal school
Tiger salamander’s lair
Roll on down and meet me there
Joseph John Racano
Cool Banana Slug
Walking through the forest
cushioned like a rug
I came upon a yellow fellow
Please don't call him bug
Chomping and recycling matter
Never staying put
Giant redwoods like it when
He's tickling their foot
Sure the guy's a little odd
Because he is a gastropod
But very much like you and me
Originated in the sea
He isn't much for racing
He's always far behind
But forest creatures love him
He treats everybody kind
Watch out where you're stepping
He's soft and moist and squishy
Protects himself by using foam
That smells a little fishy
Don't put him on corn flakes
He really isn't fruit
He's just cool Banana Slug
Inside his yellow suit
Joseph John Racano
Photo: Reese Halter
Great Grandfather Tree
A parent tree teetered and fell to the ground
Crashing like thunder with no storm around
A seedling come sprout at the same time as Stonehenge
When camels in Egypt were first ridden by men
Born in the dawn of soft Aegean bronze
Now visible from Mars atop Arsia Mons
Three hundred hundreds of years as a tree
A hundred generations have knelt before thee
We in our childhood sophomoric stage
Now just beginning to work through our rage
Craning our necks to adore scented boughs
Here before greatness we offer our vows
Great tree forgive us the fires we start
Know that the brightest one burns in our heart
In spite of our failings we still come to see
Our gnarled dinosaurian grandfather tree
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/16/2020
‘Skagg Tree’ Photo: Al Seib, (LA Times)
Under Every Fallen Leaf
Under every fallen leaf is a memory of Spring
A long and slender earwig a bug without a sting
And if I turn you over your colors all aflame
I can breathe in deeply and anticipate the rain
Under every sodden eave I hear the croaking of a frog
On his way to slumber ‘neath a fallen hollow log
When I see a tadpole I’ll know the Summer’s here
But right now I exult in this Autumnal time of year
Under every fireplace the warm brick of the hearth
Incubating everybody gathered in the dark
When the evening falls and light illuminates the room
Leaves outside await tomorrow’s sweeping of the broom
In the boughs of every tree the squirrels share a nest
Leaves of every color pad the twigs on which they rest
And while the Winter snows outside we’ll cuddle from the storm
Snuggled up together drinking tea and keeping warm
Joseph John Racano
©JosephJohnRacano/10/21/2020
First Flower of Spring
Presenting the first blushing flower of Spring
A floral in coral such joy does it bring
Like the matted pastel of a pink butterfly
Priceless in value and even can fly
A hardy rain-dancer of garden variety
Ready to be introduced to society
Pink topaz singer and her green-leaf band
Tendrils and roots planted dank in the land
Watch her befriend and then bend for the frog
Welcome the noon come to shoo way the fog
Kind Mother Nature has tickets for everyone
Sit on the grass as clouds part for the sun
Up until Summer the show will continue
Take a deep breath let the crisp morning in you
Try to imagine the birds and the bees
Their love for the world, the thoughts of the trees
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/03/21/2020
Photo: Racano
Ballet of the Shadow Squirrel
Squirrel of shadows
Dance your ballet
Your arrival at midnight
I await through the day
Coyote your cousin
Wolf as your kin
Soft are your movements
Let the dancing begin
Lighter than air
Mysterious as night
You float like a snowflake
Darting in and out of sight
Squirrel of shadows
I must tell you true
I have naught to offer
One so perfect as you
But draw nigh the cabin
And whisper your name
A fox- or has Venus
Estranged from her flame
Squirrel of shadows
So fair and so frail
Conducting a symphony
With the tip of your tail
Your ballet of shadows
Now ends with the light
But meet me tomorrow
'till then, out of sight!
Joseph John Racano
King of the Sky
Some say a Tiger cannot change his stripes
But I say a Tiger can do as he likes
Especially when he’s a Monarch specifically
Changing is something he does and terrifically
First comes the egg that looks quite like a cactus
Monarchs need milkweed and whole lots of practice
Then comes the long fellow, born to eat poison
Hatched in a batch with both girls and some boys in
Soon comes thereafter a strange metamorphosis
This is a chrysalis and there will be more of this
The Tiger in stripes sleeps inside, remains dormant
Until natural processes act as informant
Then does the Tiger continue his story
Spreading his wings and unfurling their glory
Much like the griffin of mythical tales
Off on a journey our butterfly sails
Reverent dignified beautiful changeling
The tale of the Tiger in stripes is a strange thing
Three generations ‘cross flyway and borders
Child of the universe following orders
Tiger in stripes on a stoop back in Brooklyn
My eyes changed forever when you overtook them
Danaus Plexippus, long may you fly
Colorful Monarch, the King of the Sky
Joseph John Racano
photo: Racano
Blue Flower
Pretty little flower in pastel blue
It always make me giddy when I look at you
Growing in the garden just outside my door
Soft and wavy pedals from a tropic shore
Epitome of gentleness, color of a bow
Pistoleros at the ready should a kind wind blow
I’d love to take you by the hand and walk you in the morn
But how am I to guarantee your pedals won’t be torn
If by some unlikely chance I freed you from your moor
I’d take you to a ballroom dance and spin you on the floor
I’d steer you to a balcony to watch as moonlight settles
Tell you that you’re beautiful adorned in violet pedals
I’d clap my hands and make demands for servants to come pour
And fill your glass so fast some bubbly spills out on the floor
Then propose a toast to us, and point out the big dipper
Casting downward glances for a small tell-tale glass slipper
When the evening ended
I’d walk you to your carriage
Conceal my wildly beating heart
And forego talk of marriage
Pretty little flower in pastel blue
An autumn breeze now blows
Far and wide may your seedlings ride
To sleep beneath the snows
Joseph John Racano
photo by: Jacqueline Smay
Come Save the World
You may not know me
I’m the creature in the bush
My cousin is a salmon
whom our rivers give a push
We’re always out here somewhere
Trying to get by
The whale shark vacuums plankton
The Frigate has to fly
The world is always changing
We’re trying to keep up
But change is coming faster
It’s tough to be a pup
The ocean level’s rising
So says my uncle manta
Who hangs out at the beachfront
That’s about to reach Atlanta
They cut the eucalyptus
Because it isn’t native
But now that all the pines have died
We’ve got to get creative
The planet is a paradise
For one extended family
The time has come to save the world
The question now is, 'can we'
Joseph John Racano
Mural by: Alegria Prado,
Courtest Pangea Foundation, Cozumel
Frosted Rose
A chill November draws to close
It bids goodbye to the Frosted Rose
With wintry bite, Topaz smite
And blinding horizontal light
To friend December passes on
Old Man Winter’s ice baton
An icicle within that glows
In honor of this Frosted Rose
Now a cold wind makes her sway
Courtesy of ridden sleigh
Adenoidal children play
Doing so ‘till end of day
Frosted Rose I find you fair
Inside from warm comfy chair
How I love the joy you bring
Please stay with us through to Spring
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/29/2021
Photo: Kucharscy Fotografia
A chill November draws to close
It bids goodbye to the Frosted Rose
With wintry bite, Topaz smite
And blinding horizontal light
To friend December passes on
Old Man Winter’s ice baton
An icicle within that glows
In honor of this Frosted Rose
Now a cold wind makes her sway
Courtesy of ridden sleigh
Adenoidal children play
Doing so ‘till end of day
Frosted Rose I find you fair
Inside from warm comfy chair
How I love the joy you bring
Please stay with us through to Spring
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/11/29/2021
Photo: Kucharscy Fotografia
The Meek Shall Inherit
No longer highways
But now only sands
Blankets of snow
Cover all northern lands
Out from the forests
They gather in peace
The squirrels the rabbits
The Canada Geese
The fits and the starts
Have now all come and gone
The bad sorted out
Only beauty lives on
Farewell to the jaded
Their harshness has faded
The meek shall inherit
And peace has invaded
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/12/24/21
Merry Christmas!
No longer highways
But now only sands
Blankets of snow
Cover all northern lands
Out from the forests
They gather in peace
The squirrels the rabbits
The Canada Geese
The fits and the starts
Have now all come and gone
The bad sorted out
Only beauty lives on
Farewell to the jaded
Their harshness has faded
The meek shall inherit
And peace has invaded
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/12/24/21
Merry Christmas!
Long Island Fields
In the fields of Long Island
When I was a child
The sun shining warmly
The weather quite mild
A boy in his element
A field of tall flowers
A cacophony of buzzing
Bestowing its powers
A lid in my left hand
Big jar in my right
A hornet safari
The timing was right
Scooped a blue damsel fly
Thin as the wisp
Pollen soaked honey bees
Shiny black wasps
All ‘gainst the backdrop
Of small yellow suns
Stickle-back flowers
That grew by the tons
And when the whole jar
Was an airport of sound
I opened the lid and
Sat jar on the ground
Where small buzzing genies
Rose out of the lamp
A field in Long Island
Where I went to camp
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/3/14/2022
For Tree on her day
In the fields of Long Island
When I was a child
The sun shining warmly
The weather quite mild
A boy in his element
A field of tall flowers
A cacophony of buzzing
Bestowing its powers
A lid in my left hand
Big jar in my right
A hornet safari
The timing was right
Scooped a blue damsel fly
Thin as the wisp
Pollen soaked honey bees
Shiny black wasps
All ‘gainst the backdrop
Of small yellow suns
Stickle-back flowers
That grew by the tons
And when the whole jar
Was an airport of sound
I opened the lid and
Sat jar on the ground
Where small buzzing genies
Rose out of the lamp
A field in Long Island
Where I went to camp
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/3/14/2022
For Tree on her day
left- 'Trinka' Right- 'Tree'
Back into Wolves
In the morning mist on the River Matole
Stood a pack of dogs on paw patrol
Out from the city with a chance at long last
To connect with the scents sights and sounds of the past
The salmon were running and the rapids were loud
Dogs of the heart making dad so proud
Eyes once tame now a bright red glow
The stream took a T neck, which way do we go?
Muddy misadventures from the morning to dark
Everybody wet and making nary a bark
Never would this pack ever be the same
The hunting lamp was lit inside the furnace of the brain
Later at the fire now a thousand years regressed
Muddy with the wolf pack picking brambles from my chest
There our feral journey came full circle to its end
The mighty wolf arose and dog would not be seen again
Joseph John Racano
poem and photo: Racano
Back into Wolves
In the morning mist on the River Matole
Stood a pack of dogs on paw patrol
Out from the city with a chance at long last
To connect with the scents sights and sounds of the past
The salmon were running and the rapids were loud
Dogs of the heart making dad so proud
Eyes once tame now a bright red glow
The stream took a T neck, which way do we go?
Muddy misadventures from the morning to dark
Everybody wet and making nary a bark
Never would this pack ever be the same
The hunting lamp was lit inside the furnace of the brain
Later at the fire now a thousand years regressed
Muddy with the wolf pack picking brambles from my chest
There our feral journey came full circle to its end
The mighty wolf arose and dog would not be seen again
Joseph John Racano
poem and photo: Racano
Mr. Gopher
Dear Mr. Gopher come get your seeds
I'm glad you came over I'll help with your needs
While the James Webb images show outer space
Nothing could be cuter than your squishy little face
Dear Mr. Gopher those beady little eyes
Don't leave room for tears when one of you cries
I do confess however that for seven inches tall
Your little buck teeth are the chompiest of all
So eat until your cheeks puff out, you're a demon of the seeds
I'm going to the store to buy a larger bag of these
When people wish you ill I know they just don't understand
Your little holes are filters as the water drains through sand
I'll see you on the morrow may your day be ever brite
I love to hear you snoring at my window side at night
Maybe I will put a cob of corn beside your den
I'm sure you will have eaten all the carrot tops by then
JJR
Dear Mr. Gopher come get your seeds
I'm glad you came over I'll help with your needs
While the James Webb images show outer space
Nothing could be cuter than your squishy little face
Dear Mr. Gopher those beady little eyes
Don't leave room for tears when one of you cries
I do confess however that for seven inches tall
Your little buck teeth are the chompiest of all
So eat until your cheeks puff out, you're a demon of the seeds
I'm going to the store to buy a larger bag of these
When people wish you ill I know they just don't understand
Your little holes are filters as the water drains through sand
I'll see you on the morrow may your day be ever brite
I love to hear you snoring at my window side at night
Maybe I will put a cob of corn beside your den
I'm sure you will have eaten all the carrot tops by then
JJR
Another Infinite Sunset
Infinite Sunset dance your ballet
Your arrival at moonlight I await through the day
Calling young lovers to come out and play
You capture me in a mysterious way
Infinite Sunset how do I deserve
Your contrasting colors, vitality, verve
I find it amazing a thousand years on
That you will remain long after I'm gone
JJR
Infinite Sunset dance your ballet
Your arrival at moonlight I await through the day
Calling young lovers to come out and play
You capture me in a mysterious way
Infinite Sunset how do I deserve
Your contrasting colors, vitality, verve
I find it amazing a thousand years on
That you will remain long after I'm gone
JJR
Infinite Sunset #5
Infinite Sunset my thanks five times over
I open my prayerful hands for the Plover
The master chef serves us a masterful sunset
For whom was it meant this fantastical inlet
Infinite Sunset both timeless and brutal
Against whose chill currents all swimming is futile
Forgive us the hermit crab shells we may steal
Spare us the wrath of the Elephant Seal
Up in the ether the laughing gulls call
Into brisk headwinds they slow to a stall
No buzzing drones ever owned such a vista
Land and sea joined in a dance of calista
Here on the beach in the ankle-deep foam
The sun offers warmth to the chill in my bone
The sky fades to red and the first star has come
Infinite Sunset another day done
Joseph John Racano
Infinite Sunset my thanks five times over
I open my prayerful hands for the Plover
The master chef serves us a masterful sunset
For whom was it meant this fantastical inlet
Infinite Sunset both timeless and brutal
Against whose chill currents all swimming is futile
Forgive us the hermit crab shells we may steal
Spare us the wrath of the Elephant Seal
Up in the ether the laughing gulls call
Into brisk headwinds they slow to a stall
No buzzing drones ever owned such a vista
Land and sea joined in a dance of calista
Here on the beach in the ankle-deep foam
The sun offers warmth to the chill in my bone
The sky fades to red and the first star has come
Infinite Sunset another day done
Joseph John Racano
Wildflower
Today I want to talk about the Wildflower
Humble beauty sprouted after morning shower
Pedals soft and delicate, blue as the sky in June
Others white as clouds on a Sunday afternoon
Graceful as a dancer swaying in the breeze
Bending to the music of the happy buzzing bees
Welcoming the damselflies who’ve come to you to heal
Bathing in the sunlight of an open endless field
Viridescent paradise of waist-high living emerald
Relishing my role as part of something so ephemeral
Searching for a perfect place to spread a picnic blanket
Chewing on a stem of wheat and making sure to thank it
And even when a sudden shower made us leave in haste
Not a crumb or morsel could have ever gone to waste
Waiting in the underbrush the meek enjoy the food
Wildflower please accept my heartfelt gratitude!
Joseph John Racano
©JosephJohnRacano/5/14/2023
Today I want to talk about the Wildflower
Humble beauty sprouted after morning shower
Pedals soft and delicate, blue as the sky in June
Others white as clouds on a Sunday afternoon
Graceful as a dancer swaying in the breeze
Bending to the music of the happy buzzing bees
Welcoming the damselflies who’ve come to you to heal
Bathing in the sunlight of an open endless field
Viridescent paradise of waist-high living emerald
Relishing my role as part of something so ephemeral
Searching for a perfect place to spread a picnic blanket
Chewing on a stem of wheat and making sure to thank it
And even when a sudden shower made us leave in haste
Not a crumb or morsel could have ever gone to waste
Waiting in the underbrush the meek enjoy the food
Wildflower please accept my heartfelt gratitude!
Joseph John Racano
©JosephJohnRacano/5/14/2023
see video:
https://youtube.com/shorts/jKHqC1Bnq6k?feature=share
Native of Zion
This beast in the garden
He speaks only truth
Some call him Tucuurot
His life is the proof
That the world is not over
That man has not won
His scream in the darkness
Can blot out the sun
His voice is the wilderness
Malevolent sound
Declaring supremacy
On sacred ground
Crouched at the apex
Ready to pounce
Green-golden eyes
The fierce Catamount
Puma the cougar
Panthera the lion
Tawny beast of the garden
Native of Zion
Joseph John Racano
https://youtube.com/shorts/jKHqC1Bnq6k?feature=share
Native of Zion
This beast in the garden
He speaks only truth
Some call him Tucuurot
His life is the proof
That the world is not over
That man has not won
His scream in the darkness
Can blot out the sun
His voice is the wilderness
Malevolent sound
Declaring supremacy
On sacred ground
Crouched at the apex
Ready to pounce
Green-golden eyes
The fierce Catamount
Puma the cougar
Panthera the lion
Tawny beast of the garden
Native of Zion
Joseph John Racano
Onyx Angels
How may I describe the geese
that flew by in the mist
A morning cup I stepped outside
to happy honking bliss
High above Los Osos trees
I saw them passing with the breeze
One side somewhat longer than
I rushed inside for pad and pen
The chilly air was nearly done
Blessed be the warming sun
The geese were headed toward the lake
Their captain knew the route to take
And in a flash the geese were gone
Their distant honks to carry on
I wish them well along their trek
These angels of the slender neck
Joseph John Racano
How may I describe the geese
that flew by in the mist
A morning cup I stepped outside
to happy honking bliss
High above Los Osos trees
I saw them passing with the breeze
One side somewhat longer than
I rushed inside for pad and pen
The chilly air was nearly done
Blessed be the warming sun
The geese were headed toward the lake
Their captain knew the route to take
And in a flash the geese were gone
Their distant honks to carry on
I wish them well along their trek
These angels of the slender neck
Joseph John Racano