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We met at a party of friends.
******* bra less on the shore
beckon my ship onto the rocks
I painted you a blessed *****.
We woke hungover in some bed
enough to make some kinda love.
you cried for joy or some dead
bar lover hovers still above.
 Sep 2023 Sean Fitzpatrick
Edie
hard     sell—the    sale of the
    idea that    those Golden Girls:
                           Rue/Bea/Bet/Get—
    are more existential
more    radically (Maud, folks!)   ******
    than any      Sartre translation—

and     that Nico,
      Christa, she:
          like a necrotic moth ate her own clothes
          died on her last *** run, a great stoner
          was finished rambling and gambling
These Days —    and  was more existential than
     any      loud Lou.
 Sep 2023 Sean Fitzpatrick
Edie
with the     Title of the Dead    Title of the Deed willed
     to me
and brought to me   by  a    mooringandlanguid man-in-a-coat    deadeyed dead-ended dead ugly
    who    asked me whether I owned anything
though   looked
                                     surprise!    (d)
      whenever I told him: But dear
   I cannot      hold a Title if-if-ifff  I have never
         lived but    (no less  
nevertheless    and nonetheless
    Not Withstanding death) will die, too.

There is no straight line      + it is cute mythology that soothes no one with a Title  
       straight lines are    for geometrynotpeople
     IHAVELIVEDHAVINGSAIDTHIS
and    I will steward the
    no, will PILOT the
              Dead
the Deed
          until it is done,
until it is                          unnamable.
ima eat the flack out of some miso innaminute
there are    so few balloons     I’
  d    choke on outside
so few      rubber balloons
     to **** on
But I will not bay over a lamb —
Nor will I say there is respect for an idea —
That never should be warranted —
If such idea enjambs with any virus —
Or, if is not to qualify the use of crack —
Given that there is the privilege of **** —
I will not bay over anybody’s lamb —
I will, though, hold my tongue, to wet my arid lips —
Your son uses zucchini improperly —
And we all babble around Crowley —
In grey fields, where the brain bubble popped —
final-
ly.
 Sep 2023 Sean Fitzpatrick
kell
<3
 Sep 2023 Sean Fitzpatrick
kell
<3
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.
-max
my favorite poem
~
September 2023
HP Poet: Old Poet MK
Age: 80, but feels 79
Country: Canada


Question 1: We welcome you to the HP Spotlight, Old Poet MK. Please tell us about your background?

Old Poet MK: "I was a poor scholar…difficult concentration issues from grade school onward…very little was known about dyslexia in those early years…it’s a bit of a different world…many blessings and all kinds of curses. I was fortunate to invent and able to patent a few things that people were willing to pay for. My wife and I opened a small factory and manufactured decorative accessories for interior designers in the commercial market, offices…malls…lobby’s, etc. Making a living doing something you enjoy…feels good…and for almost 40 years It was hard working fun…I was inventing day and night."


Question 2: How long have you been writing poetry, and for how long have you been a member of Hello Poetry?

Old Poet MK: "I recall attempting poetry when I was in my early 20’s…lyrics for tunes, etc…but I didn’t keep a record of that period, it wasn’t until my early 50’s when Leonard Cohen captured me in the magic of his rhythmic language…it was a melodic trap…the lyrics blew my mind and my world got a little bigger, from that time on I wrote frequently…and read the work of many poets trying to figure out how it all works….I wrote for my own enjoyment and a deep desire to improve...I began to submit my poems on a couple of sites about 12 years ago…I finally found Hello Poetry in 2016…the best of the lot in its own way…There are talented wonderful people here…"


Question 3: What inspires you? (In other words, how does poetry happen for you).

Old Poet MK: "There’s no particular formula or pattern….I think it happens when I get a little edgy…and my unconscious has observed a puzzle untamed…for me poetry is self discovery, it emerges raw…and I do my best to tame it."


Question 4: What does poetry mean to you?

Old Poet MK: "Poetry is important to me….a sense of fulfilment digesting the work of the great poets…incredible philosophies between the words….reading the work of fellow poets…learning from heartfelt insight…I take my own work seriously and work ******* interpretation and refinement…it all feels a worthy time spent….squeezing meaning out of abstraction and allegory tongues or plain words. The freedom of poetry is a gift….the lightning speed of brevity conquers a complex point in a flash….compared to a few pages of prose…it is a fascinating creative process using colors of your own choice…up down or sideways…verse rhyme or hybrid…you birth an original poem."


Question 5: Who are your favorite poets?

Old Poet MK: "Leonard Cohen…I understand his misery. Irving Layton…another Canadian poet…a close friend and mentor of Cohen…fascinating love poems. Bukowski…for his genius and dignity. Mark Strait…amazing work that surprises. Billy Collins…the lightness of his heart. Emily Dickinson…who forced me to find the voice in a poem and it’s attitude to help me understand and interpret (as important as writing itself) and I don’t always get it…"


Question 6: What other interests do you have?

Old Poet MK: "It is wonderful when one retires and has a few hobbies and deep interests. I’m an Audiophile…with a proud record collection and old vintage gear. I clean, preen and constantly improve. I paint large abstract expression (acrylic on canvas), they take a long time, sometimes one will surprise me and end up on a wall. I’ve been playing saxophone since I was a kid….never could read worth a nickel, yet it’s been very rewarding…the challenge and joy of improvisation trusting your ear. In the world of jazz I’ve met and performed with amazing people…"


Carlo C. Gomez: “Thank you so much for giving us an opportunity to get to know you, my friend! You are a wonderful addition to the series!”

Old Poet MK: "Thank you Carlo…Appreciated….What you do is not easy…"



Thank you everyone here at HP for taking the time to read this. We hope you enjoyed getting to know Old Poet MK a little bit better. I indeed did. It is our wish that these spotlights are helping everyone to further discover and appreciate their fellow poets. – Carlo C. Gomez (aka Mr. Timetable)

We will post Spotlight #8 in October!

~
There's a life of a show, not on the road
where you always know where to go
Crying rivers in your eyes, but you still
have to catch another day, of life's chaotic flow
Told to act right, but you don't know your role,
trying to fit in everyone's shoes; that stained yourself
and scuffed up your soul

Driven into destiny's twine, you try and try,
caught in the ties of a victorious lie
A glorious ugly sight, pinned into you mind,
as you stuck needles in your eyes
As I've seen a buttoning of a sea; fasten into a chest
and drifting away, as you took that dive- trying to survive

And in the night; the stars called me softly,
under a yellow moon, in my highs of emotions all so lofty
In a perfect silence I hear so loudly; choking in the mornings
rushing to me, as when you first drink is bitter cup of coffee
In the shadows of my alarm in these lucid dreams,
the ghosts of those incomplete stories, start to haunt me

Always so antsy; I just keep on searching for answers,
chasing circles inside a box, and counting on my chances
With all of my advances, I'll still slave away my time to
what I always must do- but never to call these despairs
my masters
The taste of you fades,
like the last hint of flavour in a vape
An energy between us-
though the battery has died
A beeping light in the dark, I'd seen
a blink of you before I shut my eyes away
A time to say goodbye, but it wasn't a good bye;
crashing into your skin-
I accidently fell in love with such a crush,
pulling, pulling, pulling me in once more
A love sickening addiction,
oh darling, I'm still in need a few last puffs
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