New Posts of old poems for 2021

Lizard

(Written 8/21/2019)

I didn't mean to chop off the tail of that lizard;

my shovel slipped and left him with a stub.

He's as ugly as sin, and he sits by the door

like he wants to come in.

I shook my head and said, “sorry, Jack,”

and he answered, “I want my tail back!”

I didn't have any plot in my head

that concerned quieting him

and I stood there, while he was talking and squawking

when-whoops-my shovel slipped again.

Ancestors' Names

(Written 2/7/2019)

Two! Four! Six! Eight! I'm glad that we triangulate!

BUT I match so many common names.

My Smiths, Blacks, Martins, or Greens might match with me

and they also may match each other.

So are they the Smiths, Blacks, Martins and Greens from my father's side,

or the Smiths, Blacks, Martins and Greens who match my mother?

They all had common first names, too.

If I had a common surname, I'd give the kids unique first names.

Hezekiah, Obadiah, Henrietta and Boo are perfect with Smith.

Absolom, Malachi, Guenivere and Fredericka are great with Green,

while Morningside, Stevenson, Aldrich and Montana

are Martin names through and through.

Guiseppi, Geronimo, Jeremiah and Fuchsia sound great with Black. They do!

So while we check our matches and use new tools for the DNA,

wouldn't it be nice if we could re-name our ancestors

somewhere along the way?

Big Pharma

( Written 2/28/2019 )

I'm Big Pharma and I made a new pill for you,

and if you buy it and use it and have a reaction, this is what it could do:

it could make you feel dizzy, unstable, or queasy, and make your vision blurry.

It could increase your appetite, make you throw up,

make your mouth water and your tongue furry.

It can cause pains in your stomach, and organ failure too; your skin will be dry,

there'll be pus in your eye, there's a fair chance you'll die,

and that's not all it can do.

You won't just get medicated; you'll be irritated, agitated, ruminated,

resonated, syncopated, undulated, fabricated and lubricated.

I'm Big Pharma, so if these side effects happen, you can't sue me

because I told you all about it, and you took it anyway.

It's your fault, you see.

If these things don't happen, and it all works out right,

this new magical pill will cure your ills

and let you sleep through the night,

after you pay a bunch of money to me.

Guns

( Written 8/10/2019 )

“to conquer a nation, first disarm its citizens”

You want to be a dictator. If you do this right,

the people will be so upset with all the violence

that they will say-they will DEMAND-

that you take their guns away.

Act apologetic, as if it's the one thing you really

hate doing, so when the guns are gone,

and it's all over and done,

you can pat yourself on the shoulder.

You're a dictator now;

the game has finally been won!

BABY DUCKIE

5/29/1995

Baby Duckie, swimming in a pond

Baby Duckie, on and on

Baby Duckie, what do you do?

Eat the crumbs I brought for you!

THAT KID

5/31/1995

That kid, whose folks just moved in

In the house, down the street

Is really nice, is really quite neat.

That kid can skate, ride a bike and swim

Better than I can,

Better than Jim.

That kid has video games.

I thought I was quite good,

But I can't beat that kid, there's no way that I could.

That kid is nice, shares games and toys

And she said we play okay, too,

Considering we're boys.

PEACHES

5/31/1995

If all the trees were fruit trees

And all the cities were beaches,

Would all the children in the world

Make sand castles and suck peaches?

MY BLANKET

6/2/1995

My blanket is the nicest thing

I take it when I go to bed

I hold it close whenever I sleep,

Tucked up, beneath my little head.

I bring it with me to the park,

Or for a ride in Mama's car.

My blanket helps me every day,

No matter where we are.

MY PUP

6/2/1995

My puppy and I like to run down the hall,

We slide on the floor,

Crash into the wall.

Sometimes we take a bath and we get

As wet as a kid and a puppy

Can get.

We' ll take a ball out on the lawn

Then throw it and chase it

Till it's lost, it's gone.

My friends come over

And I say "don't worry!"

Cause Puppy is friendly, soft and quite furry.

I hear my Mom calling

I know she's upset

About one of Pup's and my messes, I bet.

If God didn't mean us to make messes

Or crash when we run,

Then why did He make my Pup so much fun?

Seashore

6/2/1995

Small feet, brown and tanned,

run quickly over hot sand

to the water's edge.

Tiny hands pick up shells

and chubby fingers probe the insides

hunting for life unseen.

Vaccination

6/3/1995

Gabriel, gelding, Morgan extraordinaire,

Watched the woman as she entered the barn.

He stood stiffly, each muscle in his body tense

As she made her way through the stalls.

Some of the horses stood silent

As she did her job,

But others screamed in pain.

Gabriel watched and waited.

Finally, she entered his stall and called him by name.

"Gabriel," she said sweetly, then patted his head,

And his eyes were wide with fright.

Then, in a few seconds, it was over.

His neck felt stiff and sore,

But the woman had left him.

Vaccinations were over,

And life was back to normal.

BOY

6/3/1995

You retreat into the closets of your mind

Listening to voices only you can hear

and shutting the door behind you.

Do you feel safer there,

By yourself, alone,

Not having to cope with the trivialities

Of the real world,

Or are you just trying to find a home?

Janos

6/3/1995

Janos looked at the girl's red lips.

Her sun-bleached brown hair hung in clumps

Next to her face.

Her eyes were closed, but Janos knew

Without looking at them,

That they were probably blue.

She had just been in the wrong place

At the wrong time,

And for that she had to die.

Janos couldn't change that,

It's just the way things had to be.

The blow to her her head was quick,

And she fell, not knowing what it meant.

Then, Janos had done all the other things

Which insured that she would be dead.

He realized he could look at her,

And wonder if there were people who loved her,

But to do that would indicate a conscience

And Janos had none,

So he would not think such thoughts.

He looked at her red lips and smiled.

He did not think of her as a person,

With likes and fears and thoughts.

She was merely a source to Janos,

A supplier of body parts.

He thought himself an artist,

A sculptor of sorts.

His latest project was the Madonna,

And she would have red lips.

THE BALLAD OF JOHNNY AND IRENE

6/8/1995

He was Johnny-come-lately, and he did,

Arriving when Irene was half-past thirty-seven.

She had already dedicated her life to spinsterhood;

She took care of the cats, crocheted baby clothes

For the children of friends, and read

Romantic novels far into the night.

Then Johnny fell with a Vengeance into her life,

And things were never the same again.

She packed one small suitcase, gave the cats

To a friend, and left Scooba. They eloped,

Like teenagers in some old movie, sneaking off

In the middle of the night.

They bought a store in Tupelo, and sold everything

That they thought anyone might need, from fishing worms

To champagne. They sold clothes and dishes and lottery tickets,

And they sometimes gave free candy to children, and

By the time Irene was forty, they had two children of their own,

A boy and a girl, good kids.

When Johnny was forty-eight and Irene was fifty-five,

He had a heart attack. He lived eight days, then died.

She sold the store and moved back to Scooba.

Her children were almost grown.

She took care of cats, crocheted baby clothes

For the grandchildren of friends, and read

Romantic novels far into the night.

TWO

6/8/1995

We first fell in like, then in love,

And our coupledness became us.

A twosome, duet, we said the words

But marriage seemed unreal,

Too conventional for free spirits

Such as we.

We needed no bonds of law

Or matrimony to contain us.

We'd live like aborigines,

Free and wild, unbound

Then, one day, we decided

To parent a child,

And all our fears about fathering

And mothering came to the surface,

And we read each and every book on

Parenting that we found.

And now we have decided to part,

And we search for a way

To tell our friends that it's over,

Finished, completed.

Our coupledness is gone, and

Each of us is satisfied

To continue our journey alone.

So I put your shoes outside my door,

Like primitive peoples are said to do.

I moved your clothing into big boxes,

And your books, and every

Other thing that reminds me of you

I gave to the family that lives by the park

In their car. And I said, "I divorce you,"

Three times. And then, we were through,

No longer two.