Relativity

At 675 meters
An old woman stands
Before an ancient church
Watching
Slack jawed
An older man
Wield
A loud machine
On dead leaves
An older woman strides
And stands quietly
Looking out
Over an older church
And drinks from a timeless fountain
Gathering strength
For the road ahead

Trading in Futures

Or penny stocks
If I had one cent
For every time
I’ve said go brush your teeth
I would be rich

What is the value
Of fixing a cup
Of hot chocolate
Or
A bowl of oatmeal
Mm that was good
Is the
Return on investment

What is the value
Of patiently waiting
For a sullen child
To finish his meal
Or his homework
Payment in Kind
Will have to suffice

The Importance of Being Earnest

Lay no flowers
For Algernon
Poet man or mouse
The measure of wisdom
Is not
Intelligence
She had that in spades
Though she had never used one
Before he was Jack
She loved him as Johnny
His identity was no ruse
And I am left
A de facto member of Al-Anon
With the unredeemed legacy
Of sarcasm irony and ridicule
Her weapons of choice
When
In an earnest effort
To assail her pain
She had not yet used
A .38

Dorian Gray

The camera doesn’t lie
No matter what deal you make
With the devil
Or how good the lighting
Or from which direction
The lines are there
The shadows
The southward drift
The dissipation
The swag
The jowls
The wattle
The problem is
When I look in the mirror
I see a friendly face
A face I know
And someone loved
Once
It’s a strange game of Dorian Gray
With the devil
Of the camera
And the camera doesn’t lie
And the only thing left to do
Is smile

Joyful Noise

I’m hearing voices

There’s a ringing in my ears

An echo and clatter

And ambient music

And I know
I’m not going crazy

I’m hearing voices
And not just in my head

There’s a ringing in my ears
It’s the Cathedral bells

The echo and clatter
Of people in the street
The joyful noise
Of babies crying
The ambient music
Of people talking
Dogs barking
And not
Just the sound
Of my own voice

At 55

Shock and horror
registers
my heart sinks
like being hit in the chest
my breath is taken
the heat
of every embarrassment
humiliation
shame
indignation
fear
anger
relived
when a warm wave washes
over my face
and shoulders
and ribs
I take a deep breath
and wait it out
knowing
this too shall pass