This blog is to talk about my interests in travel, the outdoors, music, art, writing and literature; all of which have altered my views of this small world.
Saturday, May 19, 2018
MacArthur Park: Betsy and Bella
Sunday, May 6, 2018
You Were
You were
By Armando Ortiz
You were
caramel salt
after our long hike
you were
black licorice
when I smelled those curls
you were
a jolly rancher
cherry kiss
you were
a ripe peach
warm to the touch
in this history of mine
you were
not an illusion
when our cheeks pressed
you were
golden silk
Thursday, February 22, 2018
Zigging Road
Zigging Road
By Armando Ortiz
On the splendid heights of dreams, the size of Himalayan Mountains, where you find sacred crystal streams.
Is how I feel when I hear your voice and the words that reach my ears put all frustrations at rest.
But I wonder where these rivers will take me.
Will I meander through gentle ravines and silent valleys where the water glides through the surface of the earth?
Will the journey lead us to violent clashes and tumultuous rapids that slam onto boulders of granite.
This dream turned reality is uncertain and I wonder how much longer am I able to handle the twists and turns of these unknown rivers that become asphalt.
You told me of a deeper good that can be found dwelling in my heart and of the service given to communities.
You were eager to hear my daily battles with youth and told me it was just normal situations in a teacher’s life.
But I feel like I can’t help you, your course of travel has been turbulent and chaotic with an ebb and flow of violence, and how am I to respond to such realities?
I'm there to listen, but can’t stop you from reminiscing about those days.
Uncertainty with the future is a double edge maze.
Do I want to complicate my life with more problems?
Does that plastic water bottle have vodka?
Is that where your fear of loneliness stems?
Should I not care and just enjoy the ride?
Jumping out before the raft sinks to the bottom of rushing waters or right before it flies off a waterfall cliff?
What is love?
What is patience?
Where does kindness lie?
Can it be found under a soothing voice or in the laughter of a mermaids’ pleasure?
Can it be found in my pleadings to cease the drinking?
Cease the mourning?
In many ways you were my rescuer, but I soon found that you too were barely afloat, and disheveled after tempestuous rapids and crazy roads.
A siren swept by the violent waters of a typhoon.
You’ve reached the bottom many times, but have you truly touched the surface of the volcano?
I don’t cry as I did when I let go of your hand at the airport that first time, but there is just an interminable sadness that surrounds me like an aura of uncertainty.
Life is so unstable and with you the ground seemed firm, but what is up ahead and what will we face?
Will you demand your luxurious lifestyle and eat out every day or settle for a common man’s life home cooked meals?
Will you be glad with simple clothes and a gentle warm hand?
I aimed too high and seemed to have fallen to the ground and it appears that whoever I meet is on shaky ground or doesn’t want me around.
I miss you, and love you, and so I think of you, but I have to let go, for your sanity and mine.
Monday, January 15, 2018
Valley Oak
Valley Oak
By Armando Ortiz
Valley oak tree,
deeply grounded
roots mingling
with barren gully
like a standing pompom
its long branches
block the So Cal heat
soft winds makes one ponder
Unmoving tree
with dark brown skin
having reached
its farthest boundary
Continuing the cycle
with falling acorn
fattening bounty
Deer feeding
and dying in silence
while red tail hawks circle
watching coyotes dancing
Beautiful lady
baked by the sun
standing naked
like an autumn dream
Go to that canyon spring
and there say a sacrament
for something to happen
For you to become her
and I to turn into a mountain
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Mojave Road
Mojave Road
By Armando Ortiz
Mojave
A vast land of unknown
Vulnerable desert tortoise
entitled to cross Mojave roads
fetus eggs hidden in Yucca groves.
What if it was a trans-gendered crawler
would it be protected by human law
slowly moving on asphalt only touching it with claws.
Mojave
under the sun it glows.
The diversity of the desert terrain
is it evidence based or an optical illusion
the desert needs a voice and inclusion.
SUV crushing a baby turtle
means the extinction of this rare creature
and that is my science based conclusion.
Mojave
black light crawlers put on a show.
Malibu Creek State Park
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Break of Light
Break of Light
By Armando Ortiz
Break of light
emerging from the night
The beginning has arrived
the start of the day is fast approaching
Dawn’s sky is the pacific
reflecting its image in a vast ocean
Stars glitter like black mica flakes
flickers of people rising from the night
Welcoming the rays of a sunburst
embarking on a journey of life
canoes begin crossing the seas to islands
from this world to the next.
Break of light
emerging from the night
Some awaken into a prolonged slumber
at the cusp of birth
All sides see color explosions
and wonders in all directions
Life conceived
we emerge crying
Into a sea of emotions
and endless possibilities.