no use trying to remember
when forgetting is so hard
and all the years
fall and rise
like dreams
both good and bad
so sleep is welcome
and yet restless
as clouds drift over hills
there in the distance
as clouds drift over a heart
here in this chest
dreams
heaven
sleep
without dreams
in my dream: my mother
there you were
in my dream
as young as you were
when I was a kid
and you said
you were letting the past
go
but I could not
release it
I reminded you
of that Chinese restaurant
you always took me to
on our yearly pilgrimage
to Macys
during holiday season
then you smiled
as you faded from view
and my eyes
turned to liquid
and my heart
melted away
Alica asleep
spread out
taking total possession
of the bed
her left foot
protruding from under
the sheets
even her mother
had given up
trying to cover
that errant foot
a smile lingers
on her face
as she dreams
of the man
she calls her own
held in my dreams
there held
in my dreams
till morning comes
to rudely break
your hold
heaven
sleep
uninterrupted
no dreams
you the heroine
you the heroine
of my dreams
from lines by Yü Hsüan-chi: seeking blossoms
like a butterfly
still seeking blossoms
I dream
of the way
your lips
move
when you speak
another cup of coffee
another cup of coffee
to keep the dreams
away
a variation on a line by Po Chü-I
morning breaks
light fills the sky
the book is closed
the glass empty
I rest my head
to face the West
wait for sleep
and dreams
of what is left behind
Leonard Durso 