Stray

 
 
 

Little brown sparrow,
 
at the cold-water spigot
 
you sip some stray drops.

Tea

 
 

he and his mistress
 
sipping from the same tea bowl—
 
first day of autumn

Sip

 
 

mist-shrouded mountain—
 
from a clear stream far below
 
blackbird takes a sip

Stillness

 
 
 

the stillness of tea
 
cradled within a blue cup
 
before the first sip

Hummingbird

 
 
 

tea at 6 a.m.—
 
outside my kitchen window
 
a hummingbird sips

Cocoa

 
 
 

sipping hot cocoa
 
all the way to Laredo—
 
steady as she goes

Tea

 
 
 

Someone else’s hands
 
brewed this morning’s pot of tea—
 
bitter every sip.