Garden Grave / The First Time I Come to My Senses by Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozabal

Garden Grave

Eternity is a grave in the garden

where plants grow and die like thoughts.

The moon above the earth is a quiet 

witness for our secrets shining its light.

Get on your knees and dig out the dirt.

In the morning there is another witness 

burning bright. The trees will provide

solace for your life with its shade.

There in the garden a grave awaits.

Some prefer the sea, stormy or calm,

with a garden grave underneath.

The First Time I Come to My Senses 

How old I have grown on this job

that has buried all my dreams.

Green pastures are far from here.

This place grinds up the soul.

I have reached the pinnacle of

my growth. The climb was far

from fun. I desire only to leave

the first time I come to my senses.

Flowers wilt inside this room.

Birds do not sing inside these walls.

I stand in the shadows and I am

surrounded by a forest of doubt.

Great angels would not survive a

day here. I am through with this

place that grinds up the soul. I

have grown too old. We all have.

Born in Mexico, Luis lives in California and works in the mental health field in Los Angeles. His poems have appeared in print and online in Black Poppy Review, Blue Collar Review, Escape Into Life, Kendra Steiner Editions, and Nerve Cowboy.