Between geometry and philosophy
I learned about circles
going around forever
I never understood about balls,
how they meant everything:
trophies, courage, girls, money,
being counted in
I never thought about balls except
for the trouble they caused me,
the smothering days in right field
where few balls came,
growling in commando enthusiasm
near the five-yard line
through nights of ice
My specialty was leaves ––
their jagged edges,
their unlikely forms.