Garden's Greens

spinach leaves bring

a green so deep

it looks like an ominous

sea. genial lettuces

foreground more 

light in green, sometimes

whisper blond secrets.

kale makes us think

of Russia--tough,

green without sheen,

unafraid of invading

weeds, partial 

to hot soup. carrots,

always recalcitrant,

offer delicate floral

tops at this stage,

suggest positive 

orange thinking under

dirt. and potatoes,

dear spuds in their

group effort. plain

green tops as practical

as old bricklayers.

such lumpen, golden

manufacturing occurs

down there in Tuber

World, a dark quiet

factory. peas and beans:

what to say? so madly

manic in their way.

pods leap out overnight,

tendrils reach and entwine

with weird desire,

and, friend, you had 

better be ready with 

bucket. oh, greens

of the garden, we

bless you, we missed you

in Winter's gray dungeon,

dreaming seed dreams. 

hans ostrom 2021

Green of the Herbs

Thyme leaves look like frog
tears. Sage leaves
look fog-green suede.

Mint is a warrior
with shiny emerald shields.
Everything runs from it.

What should we say about
parsley? Such a hard worker.
Then it goes mad and pretends

to be a tree.


hans ostrom 2019

"Please Rate Your User Experience"

He was asked, by a machine, to rate
his user experience. He did not rate it.
He was asked by advertising, government,
and media (which formed a single entity)
to believe what he heard, saw, and read.
He did not comply. He did read
labels on jars. He turned away.

He liked green light in corridors
as well as green corridors well lit.

He rarely mourned the loss of a
narrative thread. He thought
there was a sense in which
plots should be broken.

Where was John? Where
is John? Is his name
really John, or is it Ian
or Juan? Where is anybody?
Is this the . . .? No,
it isn't. Thinking about it,

he thought his user experience
was inconsequential. The rating-system
did not accommodate such thinking.
Meanwhile, he was trying to break
himself from the habit of thinking,
"What is to be done?"


hans ostrom 2015