Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                                Even the Oak Trees are Dying

              “Wildfire…evacuation of nearby residences under way”

                                               -news bulletin

Poor drought-dead leaves in mockery of autumn
Wind-rustle across the lawn as the dried husks they are
Rattling like withered exoskeletons along the dust
Or The Ancient Mariner’s dead sailors upon the deck

The exhausted earth is hot from a summer of drought
Cicadas have no hope in their poor songs
A drifting dragonfly wobbles in its flight
And the weather reports are but cruel teasings

The sour smoke of a month of forest fires
Chokes even the stars, who in despair do not appear

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                         Another Funeral in Margaritaville


                                      Introibo ad altare Dei.

                    Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meum.

                                         -Missale Romanum


Of course all our friends are dying away
Old age sneaks up on us, ghosting us in turn:
Yevgeny, Jimmy, Dusty, Judith, Rod, and we
Who blessed each other in our happy youth

But I tell you we have a duty to sing our songs
Our perhaps artless lines lost long ago
Except that they’re not: we gave them to God
And He joined them to Creation for all of us

Of course all our friends are dying away
Except that they’re not
                                        See you in Margaritaville

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                                  Shelving Children Instead of Books

                        “…it is estimated that Germany…destroyed
                          over 100 million books in Europe.”

             -Molly Guptill Manning, When Books Went to War, xv

In Texas

We ban children’s books
We don’t ban guns;
And thus we discard
Our daughters and sons

HISD to eliminate librarians, turn some libraries into discipline centers at 28 campuses (click2houston.com)

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                                 A Cat is Stillness in Motion

                                              For Tuxedo-Cat
                               Who Simply Moved in One Day

There is no stillness like a cat
To the laws of physics a stillness unknown
When all is still he is stiller still
Even stiller than a stick or stone

There is no motion like a cat
A silent slink upon delicate paws
A smoke-like current now still again
To eye a chameleon
                                                                ­       and sharpen his claws

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                              The Gift of a Fountain Pen

                                               For Max

A fountain pen is an instrument of civilization
Its flow of ink explores the mysteries
Of all the sciences, the mind, the heart
Sorting out the good, the beautiful, the true

A fountain pen is an instrument of civilization
Through creativity, with thought and craft
Marking the line between good order and ferality
Limning the eternal romance of Creation

A fountain pen is an instrument of civilization –
(It’s also pretty good for shopping lists)

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                             Did You Grow Up in a Palace Too?

                               In Memory of the Palace Theatre

If you were fortunate you grew up in a palace
A Technicolor palace where Robin Hood
Saved England for only twenty-five cents
And the royal feast was popcorn and RC Cola

If you were fortunate you grew up in a palace
Which was so big that the Comanche Nation
Could encircle both a fort and a wagon train
And a candy bar was chuck-wagon stew

If you were fortunate you grew up in a palace
And softly, sweetly found another’s hand
As the cowboys and Indians rode away in peace -
There was a newer magic for you to discover

If you were fortunate you grew up in a palace
In the summertime of your happy youth

Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com

                            They Make Patriotism a ***** Word

                  “…Devil with Devil ****’d / Firm concord holds…”

                                   -Paradise Lost II, 496-497

How did they make patriotism a ***** word?
A conjuring not of loyalty or love
But rather foul images of bloated men
In bug-eyed shades, knee pants, and slogan tees

                    Cradling their guns in flabby tatted arms

Why did they make patriotism a ***** word?
No consideration of what is best for the nation
But rather foul images of treacherous men
In tailored suits and subtle imported ties

                    Cradling their contempt in Pandaemonian cant

The Q, the X, mechanical law degrees –
Devil with devil ****’d firm concord holds

                    Cradling their proud disobedience before God