BORDER INSPECTION

“It’s your lucky day”
He said
“Why?”
I asked

“The computer randomly
Selected you for inspection”

He said it with such grace
A nice old timer
A good gentle—man
About my father’s age
Nearing retirement
He had dark skin
Like I do
He smiled
Like I sometimes do

“Open the trunk”
He asked
I got out of my car

He did not
Got uptight
Nor placed his hand
On his pistol
Like others do

I inserted the key
I pressed right
I heard that
Familiar click
He just smiled
And kept smiling

Maybe he was thinking
About his retirement
Maybe he was thinking
With his heart
And not with his mind
So happy and relaxed
This was no Prozac

This was wisdom amongst the smog
A pearl in the middle
Of contaminated clusters
Of metal, oil, and plastic

“Maybe the computer likes to pick on
good—looking fellows like you”
He said with his enduring
Fraternal smile

For the first time
After 35 years
Of crossing the borders
Of my two countries
I happily drove
To secondary inspection

A piece from "Flashback" my forthcoming collection of poems.


NEW MOON

¿Why do you lean on me
Rubbing your breasts
On my right shoulder?

Planets of life
Mystical dunes

¿What do you want to do?
¿Will it be tonight
Or another day?

When there’s not
A full moon

And we can hide
Under a sky
Of darkness

FACES

Her face
Splattered with disenchantment
Another beautiful face
That I have
Never seen before
I can’t tell anymore
Which faces are more splendorous
Sad faces or happy faces
Sometimes the satisfied
Faces of the world
Are the most ugly
I found sad faces
Full of wonder
Those who get
Everything they want
Have stained faces
Those who lack
The frugal ones
Have faces that shine
With suffering

CAPITAL LETTERS
HAVE PUNCH
LIKE A KO
THEY’RE SHARPER
THAN A STILETTO
BIG LETTERS
HAVE BIG MEANING
AND IT MAKES FOR
FOR BIG TEARS