Login
|
Join PoetrySoup
Home
Submit Poems
Login
Sign Up
Member Home
My Poems
My Quotes
My Profile & Settings
My Inboxes
My Outboxes
Soup Mail
Contest Results/Status
Contests
Poems
Poets
Famous Poems
Famous Poets
Dictionary
Types of Poems
Quotes
Short Stories
Articles
Forum
Blogs
Poem of the Day
New Poems
Resources
Syllable Counter
Anthology
Grammar Check
Greeting Card Maker
Classifieds
Member Area
Member Home
My Profile and Settings
My Poems
My Quotes
My Short Stories
My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder
Soup Social
Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us
Member Poems
Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Random
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread
Member Poets
Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest
Famous Poems
Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100
Famous Poets
Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War
Poetry Resources
Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetics
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
Store
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter
Email Poem
Your IP Address: 13.58.112.1
Your Email Address:
Required
Email Address Not Valid.
To Email Address:
Email Address Not Valid.
Required
Subject
Required
Personal Note:
Poem Title:
Poem
I spoke with two people at the party Saturday. A young police officer, short-haired, fit, chiseled face who had two young children. He felt constrained by the law, without discretion to question mopes (perps) aggressively or to let go those who were obviously no threat. Even at a family function he seemed straight-backed, correct, devoted to his role as our protector (and his children’s) yet I thought perhaps too deeply in debt, indentured to the rules and laws of legislators and destined to be disappointed (or worse). I thought his courage and devotion (to whom or what?) would surely be poorly repaid and that this lesson was necessary to ready him with wisdom for death or further living. I worried like a brother about the unpredictable dangers, even terrors, he must daily face, and the pleasure he takes in facing them. How will he return to the fragility of family, of the soul alone, after wielding the force of the state, the blind, combined will of us all? Next a business exec, retired from a well known global investment firm. At first we talked about the lush beauty of the northeast compared to the arid west (although he loves every inch of the west, too). Then somehow we got beyond light conversation when he complained about the perceived decline in values for instance how the Ten Commandments can’t be publicly displayed. He said we can all agree on God but I said I have a mechanistic view of the universe (although the unknowable always sits just out of reach of the known). I told him my dad’s theory of reincarnation, a good man and a corporate seeker of God also, whose shoes I could never fill unless I swore belief in a supreme being. No hard feelings. Then he told me the story of his dying friend, an atheist, not even a deist like the founding fathers, who opened his eyes for the last time to correct the exec’s misperception that now he’d meet his maker. Having exceeded the bounds of acceptable conversation I went looking for my children. Nothing more to question.
CAPTCHA Preview
Type the characters you see in the picture
Required