WALKING ON WATER
It was early autumn. The wind blew hard. We were
awakened by the cry of a little bird. Suffocating
among the waves. Struggling in the foam.
But the wild wind kept it from rising up. And you
rushed to the water. To overtake, to save.
I also ran. But there was no bird. The waves had
seized it.
Then we were lying on the cool sand again. The
storm had gone away. And the sun shone.
The seagulls sat peacefully on the water. Another
pair--like you and me--appeared in the distance.
11 September 1995
Mayflower, Iowa City
Lifted from: 100 Words, Vol.3, #1
BIG SECRET
(scenes from a B-movie)
Baryshnikov ballet
Batman forever
Blood on the tracks
Breaking the rules
Bright lights
Big city
Blues in your shoes
Boxers battle
Brooklyn bridge
Broadway bitch
Burritos
Banderas
Bronx tales
Bowery sales
Breakfast at Tiffany's
Big Apple Dream
Bulletproof windows
Brighton Beach widows
Broadcasting Bette Midler
Bruce Willis Ben Kingsley
Barnum and Bailey
T. Boyle and John Barth
Bagels with cheese
Buildings for lease
Bacardi Bananas
Belasco Broadhurst
Bunches of roses
Beautiful poses
Breakdown Bob Dylan
Bernstein
Better budget
Budweiser on tap
Black people rap
Big wheels turning
Baseball and bowling
I'm breathless
It's boring
Big secret . . .
Lifted from: 100 Words, Vol.3, #3
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DREAM
IT WAS NOVEMBER THIRD, Three days after Halloween. I spent several hours
standing on the corner of Eighth Street and Third Avenue in Greenwich Village,
New York City, where the main procession of relaxed and crazy people happened
to be. I was with my Russian friends, Olga, Vadim, and Sergei. It was an
unusual holiday for me, and we all had a lot of fun. Next, of course, we
visited a new Russian restaurant on the corner of Second Street and Second
Avenue. It's easy to remember. The name of the restaurant, surprisingly,
is "Anyway." We had lots of fun there too. Taking the cab back
to my friends' house in New Jersey gave us another funny moment. The way
was underwater. Isn't that funny?
The next day, I left for Washington, D.C., by fast train. I sat near
the window in a nearly empty car and dreamt a little. Images of New York,
Halloween masks, and the red Russian faces of "Anyway" became
one big B-movie, maybe because of the paperback on my knee. Its author
is Don Miller, and the double feature lives on in this fascinating look
at the history of B-movies! When I woke up, I tried to write down what
I'd seen. Here's what happened:
Baryshnikov ballet
Batman forever
Blood on the tracks
Breaking the rules
Bright lights
Big City
Blues in your shoes
Blow job
In the basement
Boxers battle
Brooklyn bridge
Broadway bitch
Burritos
Banderas
Bronx tales
Bowery sales
Breakfast at Tiffany's
Big Apple Dream
Bulletproof windows
Brighton Beach widows
Bagels with cheese
Buildings for lease
Bacardi Bananas
Belasco Broadhurst
Bunches of roses
Beautiful poses
Bernstein
Better budget
Budweiser on tap
Black people rap
Big wheels turning
Baseball and bowling
I am breathless
It's boring
Books Boogie and Booze
Bye Bye Baby Blues . . .
The train arrived in Washington, D.C., on schedule.
Iowa City, November 17. 1995
Lifted from: Autumn Leaves
© 1996 by the International Writing Program