Author Archives: janishaag

Of all the poems I could write today,one about a cat gazing adoringlyat Dickie—as he laptops at my houseduring an internet outage at his— seems so trivial in these desperatetimes of fire and flood, earthquakesand mudslides, of so much sufferingin … Continue reading →

I’m afraid to open the can,unloose the magic, or not— what if it contains possum teethand snail shells, rose petals crumbled to bits, someunpretty pebbles and a dried- up pen? I want swirly light,a waft of lavender-verbena and glitter (because, … Continue reading →

Plant my heart on a stickright there in the garden wherepassers-by can see it, perhaps pause to admireit, say something like, Look at that heartstanding so tall and proud, perhaps put a handon their sturdy chests, feel the lub-dub of … Continue reading →

I missed National Ampersand Day,days ago, not that it mattersparticularly, but dang, it’s my favorite symbol&&&&&&&&&this Latin doohickey “et,”, which, cleverly means“and,” & to top it off is anifty ligature—two or more letters combined to makea symbol, an ancient one,found … Continue reading →

Look, I say to him as I water the lastof the hollyhocks, small burstssprouting from the yellow-stick stalks that all summer long sported baby pinkfrilly numbers fluttering like tutus.I hope you’re up there—wherever there is— offering a metaphorical hand to … Continue reading →

who deeply misses his dearlydeparted companion Dick Tracy—not the comic book characterbut an entirely real character— who married Felicia long agoand moved to her family‘s ranchwhere she was raised, where sheraised her children and trained horsesand cared for the world … Continue reading →

We come upon them,stilled atop bright yellowconeflowers near sunset,settled in for the coming night,so quiet they hardly seem alive. But this is how bumblebeesrest, the females returning tothe nest, the males in needof a safe haven to bed down. We … Continue reading →

Canary yellow fins of a kayak paddleflash between the soft blue of skyand teal green of Tahoe’s nearshore, as a boy embedded to his waist inthe small craft masterfully maneuversunder and around the pier wherehis grownups sit sunning on asparkling … Continue reading →

for Cora Johnson She once played a two-bitdancehall girl in a smallNevada town—a bit ofa floozy, Peachy Keen— but we know her asthe most loyal of friends,a gal who’d upend her life,grab her best college buddy from Colorado and flyto … Continue reading →

Lazy clouds meander like legless sheepacross the blue-eyed sky, pencil-pointedpeaks jutting into it, mountains we haven’t seen in ages, ones swathedso long in snow it seemed that theirrocky faces would never reappear. But there they are, the old reliables,Sierra sentinels … Continue reading →