In the Middle of a Gritty Gray

" In the Middle of a Gritty Gray "

by Suzán Jiván

In the middle of a gritty gray
as an early sign of reconciliation
a protective heat shield falls away
across a cheatgrass plain

no longer than a baby's eyelashes
set for a delicate decent
like the silkiest ever spidery filament
reckoned by spinnerets over millennia

combining giving rise
to striking revivals
convincingly tied
to stylized findings
with underlying insights

found only in long agoes
as tidal oceans
of unicellular microbes
growing in a slow
bio-control looking ghostly...

Slide-Mounted Haiku

" Slide-Mounted Haiku "

by Suzán Jiván

Light straw to dark brown
living gregariously
bark of rotting trees

Nine beadlike segments
distinct triangular head
oval abdomen

Giving mating gifts
secretions on leaf litter
hindlegs fight for mates

Eating fungal threads
sexual complexity
slide-mounted, stained red...

Not Immediately Clear

" Not Immediately Clear "

by Suzán Jiván

Not immediately clear
like a potent deal
of honed homemade
explosives

aligned neatly
in order to hit the weak
swiftly and tactically
as makeshift
heavy casualties

better handled
with little evidence
of substantial
shifts in attitude

evening the odds
with a whopping
piñata promising
a firm response...