They came and took the dog away today
and they’re going to put it to sleep
because it barked, they say.
A lady dropped a dime in the checkout line
and no one stooped to pick it up.
She shrugged and said, “It’s just a dime.”
An old man on the bench in the park watched a kid run about,
tossing peanuts to the pigeons. The old man grinned
and waved and nodded and someone called the cops to check him out.
Some teens made a giggling trip to the mall
during the day, a school day, to shop for jeans.
In the food court they had burgers and a malt.
A woman in a minivan hurried into the grocery lot.
She never gave it a thought as she parked,
ignoring the sign for the handicapped spot.
An elderly lady sat in the library with a permanent pout,
not reading her book. She fell asleep and passed away
and for a day, a very long day, no one came to check her out.
They came and took the dog away today.
The veggie stand sold the last of the corn.
Winter came and took the leaves away.
Somewhere, someone was popping popcorn,
the smell hanging in the air like bacon frying
and in the hospital, another baby was born.
On the news they said an icy patch ended the lives and ride
of this drunken man and the girl whose car he hit.
We lit a fire today. It was cold, so very cold. Outside.
May 27, 2025
May 27, 2025 at 7:11 PM UTC
The pain of want I cannot avoid
I hold my nose against the smell
I close my eyes some scenes to quell
I clasp my ears so not to hear
I turn away from what I fear
But still, I cannot hide my heart
To worlds of which I am a part.
And still, I am. I fill a void.
Nov 12, 2016
Nov 12, 2016 at 2:13 AM UTC
***** claims a great benefit:
***** kills germs lickety-split,
But, alas, I've no proof of this
Since I can't get germs to drink it.
Sep 25, 2013
Sep 25, 2013 at 6:45 PM UTC
Was there ever a poet so depraved
That in his bid for eternal admiration
Once a pun upon a rhyme he gave
Was so appalling it set generations
Of poets spinning in their graves
In wordless admurmuration?
Sep 12, 2013
Sep 12, 2013 at 1:52 PM UTC
I wish the Second Amendment
And the "right to bear arms" just meant
Hugging is our only intent.
-- www.CitizenPoet.com
Mar 18, 2013
Mar 18, 2013 at 5:49 PM UTC
Intelligent men
Believe in God. Assuming
God believes in them.
-- www.CitizenPoet.com
Mar 18, 2013
Mar 18, 2013 at 5:35 PM UTC
Writhing slimy slick snakes of oil
Around the Gulf of Greed now crawl
What we sought will consume us all.
What before was venerated
Our pristine world penetrated,
****** bodies violated,
Writhing slimy slick snakes of oil
Changing the name and so despoil.
Gulf of America? Recoil.
A despot who's addlepated
Corrupt, old, and dissipated.
Land and water desecrated.
By writhing, slimy, sick snake oil.
Jul 11, 2010
Jul 11, 2010 at 12:19 PM UTC
They say the best stimulation,
Lies in one's imagination.
True, this may work some of the time
Just like candy, roses and wine,
But nothing achieves excitation
Better than infatuation.
Jul 11, 2010
Jul 11, 2010 at 12:15 PM UTC
He's there, you know. Just before dawn
When half awake you smell coffee,
When you feel touched, but all are gone
When at night the hall creaks softly
And in the days and night that pass
You dimly hear his voice once more,
In the breeze, trees, the empty class
He's there. You're the one he's there for.
Jul 11, 2010
Jul 11, 2010 at 12:09 PM UTC
Birth we forget, death is furtive,
We remember only what we live
Birth to death, life has much to give
If we do not forget to live.
Jul 11, 2010
Jul 11, 2010 at 12:02 PM UTC