the devil goes doorknocking:

"hello, sir! would you like to sign up fo-.."

i shut the door in his face. which, by some freak accident or other, is red red red.

i made a mistake.
the devil breaks in.
i sharply intake.
then cornered by sin.

there's a flame in his eyes
and there's ice in his veins
there's no message to reap
but a soul to reclaim.

*"what the hell!?" i shout, i cry.
"you're quite right, though 'Devil' will do".

"oh my god!" i whisper, i sigh.
"he can't help, friend. i killed him too."

When Summer Ends

When summer ends,
The air is strange, the mood estranged,
Winds begin, heat descends,
One wends one’s way
Across a browning lawn
To go back to the city, town.

Winter coming.
Urban living, job or studies,
Plain old washing dishes humming.
Kids in school again.
It could be you relax again.

When summer ends,
Visits, guests and nature over.
Leisure, in so many ways,
But as in everything, the flip side too.

Summer, fall and winter blends
Into one year
Again
As in
Its antecedents.
Life goes on.

When Summer Ends 8.23.2017
Circling Round Nature II:
Arlene Corwin

Worrying about nothing
While nothing is everything

Why be anyone else?
When you're more beautiful being yourself.

Do all people find ways to torture themselves?
We could have colors
and blindness
stacked on our shelves

but we are keen,
enigmatic,
and desperately mean.

lay off the Pause button and I'll Play
the string of
your harp
that nobody else knew how to start
You're ******* welcome,
I'm glad you see I tried,
never did I imagine they'd ignore me when I
cried, or when I
stretched out my hand
for love instead of admiration
comfort instead of more opinions of their conceptualization
of my place in our ***** swarm of civilization

it doesn't mean a thing to be complimented
when you want more than recognition