Michael Kalavik Poet Lyric

That's What You Do - First Movement

The detritus of consumer culture
Is coming down the chimney Christmas eve.
It’s a milk and cookies taming of the shrew.
It’s what we do.

I have a firm grasp on the mundanely ineffable, 
But I’m not making any new memories.
All my memories are only passing through.
It’s what they do.

I’ve no time for shamanistic media whores 
Who paper the landscape with billboard opinions.
They wouldn’t pass scholastic peer review.
They never do.

In order to maintain the appearance of sobriety
I keep a balanced rhythm of ritual and routine.
My survival skills are tested, tried and true.
It’s what I do.
 
I stay below the radar and far above the fray,
Attending to whatever task is presently at hand.
If I say I will, I always follow through.
That’s what I do.

But whatsoever has any of this to do with you?

My pupils dilated when we made eye contact.
I didn’t want to stare, but I couldn’t look away.
You dared me not to change my point of view.
That’s what you do.

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L Milton Hankins December 10, 2021 at 7:26 PM Michael, another fantastic piece of writing, my friend. You are truly gifted, and I hope you will continue writing for us here at Poetry Soup, but also that you will give publishing in the real world a go! L Milton Hankins December 11, 2021 at 12:02 PM I suppose it is, Michael, but your work is worthy of some of the national magazines, i.e. New Yorker. Also, I think you should try some of the well-respected poetry journals. The difference, you see, is that here you can publish anything you wish (and many do!) but publication in a respected journal is quite a feather in your cap. Michael Kalavik December 10, 2021 at 7:39 PM Thank you, but isn't this the real world? Am I missing something?