an old writer and his words

  • TRAVEL THOUGHTS 13

    In this age when facts and statisticsdefine reality instantlyit is comforting to knowthat if all the containerson the piers of the Port of Newarkwere laid end to endthey would still beexceedingly ugly. First published in Exquisite Corpse, No. 43, 1993

    Lou Faber

  • BACKROADS

    When you drive on back roadsyou develop a differentsense of direction, of place.You know you’re in the Southby the trees, Spanish mosshanging like heavy rainand stealing the leavesof smaller trees, andall manner of thingshanging from or affixedbetween trees, a tire swing,something passing for a hammockand endless clotheslinesannouncing that herethe seasons are measuredby rainfall and temperaturesthat…

    Lou Faber

  • TODAI-JI

    On the steps of the Templethe unexpected morning snowwhich cast a threadbare blanketover the gates and lanternsrecedes slowly like a supplicantwhose prayers have been offered.The candle flames shiverin the strong February windwhile the Buddha sits, implacable.In the park below a dragon kitetakes the wind and swoops and dartshigher and higher, staring downat the Temple and…

    Lou Faber

  • AKASAKA

    It sits off an alleythat winds off an alleyhalfway up the hillyou climb from Akasakato Ropponggi, cursing the layoutof the subway at the endof a too long day of meetings.There are no plastic samplesin a glass case outside the doorjust a t-shirt and beer mug, forribs and fires don’t translate wellto polystyrene and the loudoldies…

    Lou Faber

  • A HAIKU

    golden rice shootsunder Fuji’s eye –farmer stops for tea First published in To Live Here: A Haiku Anthology, Wee Sparrow Press, 2023 Sometimes good things come in the smallest packages. This is a wonderful, international collection of haiku by some amazing poets. You can find it here, it is well worth the purchase:https://www.amazon.com/Live-Here-Haiku-Anthology/dp/8409528169/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2FVGMQCD12NUW&keywords=to+live+here+a+haiku+anthology&qid=1691607414&sprefix=to+live+here%2Caps%2C104&sr=8-1

    Lou Faber

  • SAVANNAH DREAMS

    Slide between the sheetsexhausted after a day of walkingthe streets of this old city.This is a city of squares, statuestoo many to fully recall, eachone’s history unknown to most,and with the slowly falling rainto remain unknown to us.Despite its age and great beautythis is a tourist city, one whererestaurants don’t take reservationsknowing their tables will…

    Lou Faber

  • ONE MORE

    He hated the expression “another trip around the sun.” First and foremost, it was arrogant, accurate but arrogant. The universe has a billion billion suns and ours is a bit, wordless player in a great galactic drama. Yes, while we took that trip, that’s like saying that standing still on this old planet you are…

    Lou Faber

  • PRAGUE

    When we walked the streetsof Prague, we felt at once alienbut surrounded by so many tourists,almost somewhat at home.Unlike in Lyon or Arles wheremy limited high school Frenchallowed me the most rudimentaryof conversations, in Pragueit was pointing or Google Translate,and then I wore the mark of touristdespite wearing clothes Ihad purchased there the day before.We…

    Lou Faber

  • THE HERMIT

    The hermit livesin the shadowof the great mountainlistening to the symphonyof the bluebirdand the wild Roseengulfed by the sky,the meandering streamhis constant companion.I live in a cityin a sea of city dwellerseach of us prisonersmarching from cellto cell, with passing nods.we hear only solitudeand are blindto the ever shifting clouds.Kuan Yin sitsin her templeand whispers…

    Lou Faber

  • SAVANNAH

    The morning clings to youlike a damp sheet, the foglifting slowly, a magnifierpulled away from the square,the live oaks edging into focus. You sit at the table, wipingthe crumbs from you reallydon’t want to know when,a steaming cortado waitingpatiently for the first bitesof the large scones onthe mismatched plates. In the background a cry,“vanilla soy…

    Lou Faber