the tremendous valley of california

Pablo Picasso - The Fool, 1904

“All know that the drop merges into the ocean, but few know that the ocean merges into the drop.”

Kabir

dear parents

if there is a next life i don’t want to be your son

i don’t want to even know you

you are as different from each other

as summer is from winter 

and yet you’re both full of shit

father 

with your lies and your cruelty

mother 

with your superstitions 

your ridiculous beliefs 

and your violence

i am far better off with the dharma

even if i am a flea on the ass of a mongrel dog

i release myself now

from all of the crap you taught me

there is no god and no america to worship

all is impermanence

i will worship emptiness
i will pledge allegiance to the truth

if there is a next life i don’t want to be your son

i don’t want to even know you

even though i love you still

years after you have passed away

into the shadows

into your cool graves 

it is a spring day 

fresh and green,

and as i write these words

the strength of the sunshine

lays across my face and hands

and i am free 

i choose to be so

James Lee Jobe

"Don't fear mistakes. There are none."

Miles Davis

cool night air

sleeping under a favorite blanket 

waking once around 3 am to read a couple of poems

--wang ping’s ten thousand waves--

then sleep until the soft sunrise sings me awake 

to go make the coffee

that’s a nice night isn’t it

yes nice indeed

James Lee Jobe

Tule Elk, Yolo County, California

"What an extraordinary privilege to know
that you have within you a refuge
that nobody can ever touch.
Nobody can take it away from you."

Helen Tworkov

if you must know 

i live in the tremendous valley of california 

sheltered below the mountains 

and safe from the sharks in the sea 

but in another world i live in the mountains 

and in yet another world i live beside the sea 

or perhaps i am the valley 

perhaps i am the mountains and the sea 

i don’t really much care 

this valley reaches from here to there 

and i am grateful to be alive 

let’s be silent now 

you close your eyes and i will close mine 

that is reality enough for one day 

James Lee Jobe 

"When the mind relaxes its grip, the body leads the way.

It’s a great relief for the mind, in fact." 

Willa Blythe Baker

A poem from the late Robert Bly

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James