Max Reif Poems

I could say the partnership
begins when my day begins,
but in fact it's as 24/7
as an all-night diner.
...

The best things
have their day

and then a night
...

And how can all the blood
that pours from wars,
the stain of all the greed,
and hate's black shadow
...

The room where a young boy
beheld toy soldiers' bedspread battles,
great legions clashing in still air —
...

Sometimes my poems are shy,
tired of the scrutiny of eyes,
tired of being undressed.
...

I refuse to be 'Maxwell',
Though that is my name.
...

Pleasant Hill, CA

1.
Civilization. Carpet of grass.
A few trees here and there for shade.
...

A stern figure
blocked my way,
said, 'Not this path.'
...

Well, years ago I went down
to MacDonald's in the Embarcadero
in SF for breakfast,
and I read the menu and felt hungry,
...

Because living is a river of ordinary moments,
each moment connected to the next,
there is nowhere we can go to escape
from our fate which is to merge
...