Poem old and poem new.

Three years ago the city was tearing up the street in front of the duplex I live in. One night I stood by the chain link fence on the side of yard and looked at the destruction/construction and came up with this poem.

Street Side

Warm summer night
After
Hot summer day.
Leaning on link fence to look at
Covert culverts recently uncovered by construction.
Drought water
Slides across rock filled silt
Culvert to culvert.
Light
From moon in sky,
Light
From street lamp corner across,
Catches clear stream
Illuminating haphazardly.
Nostalgic breeze embraces
Sweat stained tee.
Near silent,
Until
Train whistle sighs distant,
And human heart sighs near.

-July 2003

Early this morning I came up with this poem. It expresses a kind of melancholy I have been feeling lately. Ah, wasted time.

Genius Lost

It is
Sadness
Seeing native
Talent set aflame
By doubt
Leaving ashes
In which to mourn.

-July 2006

I finished Genius Lost yesterday after I had found Street Side in a notebook (though I hadn't given it that name until a few minutes ago), rewrote it here and saved it as a draft. They both share a certain sadness, a longing for things past and lost.