Short and scary

I don’t often share my poetry. But I recently came across two short poems from a while back that seem particularly appropriate to the dark mood I described in my last post, to All Hallows’ Eve, and to Day of the Dead.

Two Poems

An Invitation

Come, death
into this house
and linger
over coffee.
Open the door,
step in,
make yourself
at home.

Come on now,
be a friend.

Sit down here
with me in this chair
wreathed in light,
my light, my lamp.
Trace your bony fingers
here, softly,
over my heart.

Whisper to me
that you are no bigger
or smaller
than I picture you to be
when I close my eyes
and see the dark
under my lids
still patterned
with the wreath
of light.

—November 14, 2002

Before and After

First we are not here
then we are, for a while
then we are not again
forever.

—January 15, 2003

Halloween happenings in the SF bay area

I’m not planning to dress up this year but I will put on my witch hat and hand out candy at the door. If you’re in the San Francisco area and want to check out some nifty seasonal happenings, here are a few:

Halloween Nightlife – Courtesy of SF Station (Mostly October 31)
Truck or Treat – Halloween Food Truck Dance Party, San Francisco (October 31)
Day of the Dead Celebration – Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts (MCCLA) (November 2)
Dia de los Muertos – San Francisco (November 2)

What will you be wearing—and over whose heart will you be tracing your bony fingers—this evening?