Wintering

December 10, 2023

Fluff the pillows and plump them up
Tuck in the edges and clear the floor
Put away the sharp things that serve no more
Stack the plates and sweep the dust
Enjoy the eggs and salted butter
Organize the things that clutter
And move the armchair once again
Till thoughts align and quieten

There’s time to be here in the present tense
Living quietly, absorbing the silence
Holding the mind in a cradle to rock
till thinking again is with innocent thoughts
Brush out the dander and straighten the hair
Polish dried leather from common use wear
Soften the feelings long over wrought--
Abandon the fight the nerves will stir up

There’s no need for violence or a swarm of emotion
Vacations aren’t always a trip to the ocean
I go off sometimes on a long winter’s stare
And think of some happy thing that stands up the hair
So life slowing down hums along with a buzz
And softens like willow tree tresses and baby duck fuzz

The static is gone and there’s peace in the air
And God lifts the chin and a smile is there
So there’s no reason for anger and no call for revenge
Because every promise revealed is a blessing from Him

And I live for the day and what’s happening in it
And my only concerns are from minute-to-minute
And there’s time to be about the business of living
No more need to answer every unruly misgiving
Because my nest is up high, and no-one is knocking
The bird in the clock face is not coo-coo clocking
There’s no pressing engagement that anxiety sends
I’m just here relaxing till the long winter ends

Silent Music

Written June 29, 2025

Between us was a silent music

Like the symphony of stars in concert

No notes - only the particles of light singing

When I stood across from you

I radiated music

Hoping for a Little Rain

Written July15, 2025

We heard the thunder rumble and saw black clouds in the sky

They covered the sunshine, mostly

And the dust began to fly

The wind came coolly blowing and we inside our shelter hid

We thought it would come a downpour

But it never did

Surrender to Sleep

June 12, 2025

I’ve had enough

I’m going to sleep

There’s nothing else that I can do

Too tired to solve problems, now

Too weary to compare the issues

Nothing makes sense after midnight

No good can come of late night schemes 

Even the wild hairs are lying flat, now

As I toss and turn to find my dreams

"Surrender to Sleep" written by Nina Ricci ©2025 All Rights Reserved

Avalanche - written Nov. 27th, 2024

I can be buoyant and happy

Or a puddle of woe

Up on the mountain

Or under the snow

When I come off a gig 

it can go either way

—Productive and useful

Or distressed and melancholy

I need the train of good feelings

To run on its track

Unhindered and chugging

Outrunning the snags

But, when I'm derailed 

I come under duress

Like an avalanche falling

On top of my head

I get snowed under 

And, I will be blessed,

If it only takes days

To pull out of the mess

It might take a crew 

to salvage what’s left

Of my train of thought 

-broken-

After the wreck

But, when I get over the mountain

And back in the groove

I’ll ride though the valley

chugging it smooth 

Hugging the curves 

feeling it purr 

Forgetting the avalanche

Until the next time around

“Avalanche” written by Nina Ricci ©2024 All Right Reserved

Hobo Man's Rhyme - Sun, Oct 4, 2020

My shoes are loose
the latch is bust
leather’s puckered—
still good enough
musty, dusty
water damaged
rings of rusting
‘round the edges
I drag ‘em by my kneecaps
sweaty leather shore get heavy
the sole flaps, claps on the
bricks and concrete
I sit by the street lamps
begging bread from strangers
coins get heavy when I hold em
put my coppers in my booties
I keep my loot inside my shoesies
I trust em more than pocket holeses
‘sides I spend it 'fore folks knows I has it
Before the sun goes down on Brookline
It’s danger town when sun goes down
I take the bus line down to Copley
I find my bench inside the square
when p’lice stop 'trolling, I sleep out there
Under the moony


When the big clock tolls 7
I know it’s morning
I check to see if I’m still here
pull the papers off my face
stuff my trash bag in my knapsack
and think about ma breakfast
I wash out by the docks
then I meet the Polish lady
who feeds the ducks
where Mother Goose is buried
she always gives me bunny bread
and on weekends, if I’m lucky,
I get peanuts at the farmer’s market—
and whatever’s dropped, too bruised, or moldy

People wonder why I don’t go down to Flord-y
They say it’s better wet'r for a panhandlin'-daddy
but I’m like the green stuff on a copper cladding
I’m part of the city
Like the rust on rails,
or padlocks on fences
I’m the sleeper on the subway benches
I’m the reason for Hobo’s Lullaby
I’m the conscience naggin' the white shirt/black tie
I’m the reason the church keeps open
I’m the tired, poor, and huddled masses
I’m the reason people count their blessings

Duchenne Lines (January 19, 2024)

Duchenne lines are the marked signs of genuine happiness

And little sparks like comets shoot across her eyes 

Her smile squeezes them moon-shaped

She’s showing off her happiness beside the one who brought it out in her

Though, not being a first-time bride, there is a first time glow about her

For the widow who is twice blessed, 

having put herself aside to be nursemaid through the end times

is deserving to be blessed

This is her happiness: her crown of vitality that now nourishes her countenance

She has been watered by the sweetness of new love in bloom

And new life has poured into her roots

A bloom that has come out in winter is more striking

It’s rare, and I’ve never seen it before

I have been in this case— gobsmacked 

But this look of love is very beautifying

It has done something to her countenance that is new

She reached contentment first, but God granted her happiness

It was the gift given for the completion of her first vow: 

to God and to her husband.

And once it was fulfilled, she was set at large in her own field

To become who she was and is on her own.

She made strides and grew into herself 

She brought her talents out and delved them

She took trips and helped parents

She saw their two children married and settled

Then, she was again alone, but contented.

And somewhere along the dusky road of grief and letting go

The sun rose and it was golden

Duchenne lines are the marked signs of genuine happiness

And she has them.