My Early Work in Wind Chimes, Cicada and The Red Pagoda
by
John J. Dunphy
Some of my earliest haiku and senryu appeared in these three long-gone magazines. It was quite primitive compared to my later work. Much of it still adhered to the old 5–7–5 format.
In any event, enjoy!
Wind Chimes
tray of purple hearts
priced at ninety-five cents each
on a pawnshop shelf
#24
the ferris wheel stops
***
my collie returns
on this Indian Summer day
trailing gossamer
#26
dog days of august
two mormons in coats and ties
ringing my doorbell
#28
Cicada
this Veterans Day
old men march in uniform
reeking of mothballs
***
old condom wrappers
woven into a bird nest
alive with fledglings
#11
clenching canvas
a young marine
sits for a tattoo
***
on an old road map
palsy-trembling finger traces
Route 66
***
twilight
we sink a pond lily
with our fingers
#17
‘Nam veteran buries
his Bronze Star
with a crocus
***
potter’s field
rows of parking stakes
in an empty lot
#18
morning in the bar —
coasters scrawled with phone numbers
tossed into the trash
***
lipstick
on glasses, the crushed smoked
butts
***
exhaust fan wafts
stale odors of beer
to Monday commuters
#19
mortar bombardment
flashback of ‘Nam
in the bowling alley
#20
The Red Pagoda
only dandelions
furbishing the graves of those
in the potter’s field
5:2
homeless in the city: 12 portraits
asleep on a bench
newspapers for a blanket
shopping bag pillow
***
family of five
rummage through the garbage cans
behind a cafe
***
before admittance
mission requires delousing
minister wears gloves
***
sitting on the curb
muttering to companions
only he can see
***
drunk in the gutter
on the hand clutching his pint
a gold wedding band
***
seated in the mission
listening to a sermon
with empty stomachs
***
all her possessions
loaded into a shopping cart
with only three wheels
***
in the library
pretending to read a book
to escape the streets
***
dead in an alley
partially devoured by rats
shoes and coat stolen
***
lying on a grate
awakened by a night stick
thrust into his ribs
***
one man pauses to wipe
the mouth of a shared bottle
when it’s passed to him
***
woman and her child
huddled together for warmth
in an alleyway
6:1
John J. Dunphy’s poetry collections include Old Soldiers Fading Away, Zen Koanhead, Touching Each Tree, pagan rites, Bullet Cluster, Stellar Possibilities and Dark Nebulae. He is also the author of non-fiction works such as Unsung Heroes of the Dachau Trials: The Investigative Work of the U.S. Army 7708 War Crimes Group, 1945–1947.