Focus on the light

So many of us wait with bated breath 

For the storms we fear lie looming in our future. 

Having done what we can to forestall the worst,

Can we not try to focus 

On the light that still surrounds 

Those threatening clouds?

Leavings

At this stage in my life, I’d like to think — 

Or maybe hope — 

That, like this tree, 

 I may have littered the ground around me 

 With my leavings, the poems and the photos, 

But there are still plenty more 

Awaiting in my branches, 

Which aren’t barren yet, 

Though I’m haunted, like so many of my peers, 

By the emptiness yet to come…