Best Suits Poems
As the dogs led me on our walk, I took a chance and left my raincoat behind despite the threatening clouds. The sky turned from dappled to grey but I stayed dry, although my legs were damp from dogshake after we past the creek.
In the woods, the air was quiet as nervous birds flitted silently from tree to tree, uncertain if they should hunker down to feed for a few more days or move on afore it gets too cold.
Across the border, the wanta be leaders of the flock, all dressed up in party suits, are playing a different game with stakes almost as high. And while I don’t have a vote I sure do hope that Hillary trumps Donald.
Survival suits her
and for those
who pay attention,
who look closely,
it’s in the way she moves.
The way she talks.
The way she carries herself.
She has a flame
burning inside her
sparking a fire in you.
One that burns
a city to ashes,
along with all
the painful memories.
A flame
so bright and blazingly,
you always run the risk
of being burnt alive.
Survival suits her
and for those
who pay attention,
who look closely,
know, it was her only option.
Her only way to heal.
Her only way to make it through.
Survival suits her
and she wears it proudly.
Along with all her other scars.
The men in suits
Light a fire
They pretend to be enemies
Though they really are the best of friends
Every move, watching the world,
Burn to flames
Public protests for garbage, whilst
Many are killed, destroyed, silenced
Criminals live in wonderland
Innocents are framed
Candles burn but like phoenixes, rebirthing from melted wax,
This world is burning, but nothing melts
One of my boyhood dreams was to become a successful functionary,
With an office with a view, a fine oak desk and a pretty secretary!
To wear a suit and tie (to me) would be the pinnacle of success.
I was sick of wearin' brogans and overalls - I'd settle for nothin' less!
I suppose to a certain degree my youthful dreams came true.
For thirty years I wore a tie with the Air Force suit of blue.
Anon, the wearin' of a suit and tie had lost much of its appeal.
My discomfiture at wearin' a stranglin' tie became hard to conceal!
My spouse attributes my disdain for suits and ties as a lack of cultivation.
To not wear a suit and tie to church she considers an abomination!
I'll deign to wear such garb for a weddin' or funeral to be a tad more couth,
But I suffer thro' each excruciatin' minute of the ordeal to tell the truth!
Here in the wild west, a well-dressed dude wears scruffy boots and jeans.
Shucks, the feller could be a prosperous rancher and a man of means!
I'm in heavenly bliss wearin' my jeans sans a constrictin' suit and tie.
I feel as free as a golden eagle soarin' in the pristine Colorado sky!
I reckon that when I cease to function and bid my friends adieu,
That they'll insist on displayin' my mortal shell for everyone to view.
But if they dress me out in a daggone suit and especially a throttlin' tie,
There ain't no delicate way to express it - I'll just up and die!
Robert L. Hinshaw, CMSgt, USAF, Retired
© All Rights Reserved
Sharpened minds
Expert calculators
Critical analyst
Motionless elevator
Crisp reports
Excellent speech
Suits black
Skin impeached
Strength is Black
Brilliant talent
Commitment unsurpassed
Removed from ballot
Work most requested
Quality Observations
Families sacrificed
Review of course unexpected
Sharpened suits
Crisp reputation
Strength consistent
Powerless nation
here come the barbaloots
the barbaloots
in their barbaloot suits
i see them coming everyday
everyday
rolling in the hay
but then comes along a miser
a miser
never the wiser
then they all go away
away
hopefully to return some sunny day
Most women on Easter Sunday
Morning wear festive and elegant
Bonnets to match their bright
Dresses; men wear lighter, sharp
Suits with cheery feeling, not the
Usual dark ones that are so
Depressing and their neckties must be
Perfect! Coming out of the church in
Throngs, they seem brides and grooms
Again...chatting and smiling at one
Another, knowing that He was,
Risen and gone to Heaven to
Prepare a place for them and their
Children...shouldn't they rejoice
Today? And sitting at an exquisite
Table they say Grace, while Easter
Eggs and bunnies tempt them with their
Lively colors and sweet smell! Even the
Dogs and cats hide underneath the table for
An unforgettable, delicious dessert!
Entered in Brian Strand's Contest, "An Easter Picture"
So many empty suits
Talking at us
Over us
Under us
Concerned only with power
Greed
The bottom line
Promises broken
Passing more laws
To restrain us
More propaganda
To de-brain us
Done a good job
On quite a few
So far
Taxing us
Into oblivion
Shepherds wearing ties
Herding so many
Like sheep
Between the fences
Of their rules
Like cattle
Led to the slaughter
Of their dignity
Of their morality
Of their very lives
Bowing to Big Brother
In a three-piece
A little more privacy
Surrendered
Struggling up
A slippery slope
Greased by stupidity
Watching passively
As their freedoms erode
Such a pathetic lot
Controlled by the government
But wait a minute
Aren't "We The People" the government?
They don't think so
And you know what!
They're right!
© Copyright 2014 Robert William Gruhn - All Rights Reserved
"A poem to me is the essence of any thought,
Being built from its foundation into tower scraping sky.
It can fly like no other bird to places never seen,
Even spaceships can only dream of taking its place."
Robert William Gruhn © 2014
Hoosier winters were mighty frigid on the farm when I was a lad.
Ma insisted no matter what I did, I was to be warmly clad!
With toboggan cap, mackinaw, mittens and lace-up leather boots,
And of course beneath it all, one of those scratchy union suits!
They've been around nigh on a hundred-fifty years, I'm told,
Worn by men, women and kids to protect 'em from the cold.
With a handy flap, dozens of buttons, in colors of red or white;
They don't enhance the physique -in fact they look a fright!
The buttoned flap is a practical and convenient innovation,
Especially when in a hurry and in moments of desperation!
I've even heard of fellers dwellin' in 'em all the winter long.
By springtime the fragrance must've been most powerfully strong!
On clothes lines on cold and wintry days hung a frightful horde,
Of frozen union suits dancin' on the lines as stiff as a board!
In a pile nigh the parlor stove they would be casually tossed,
To shed their clingin' coats of rime and gradually defrost!
Ain't nothin' that'll keep you warmer on a cold wintry morn,
For sloppin' hogs, milkin' cows and shuckin' fields of corn,
Curryin' horses, milkin' goats or any other agrarian pursuit,
Like a scratchy, itchy, long-legged, venerable union suit!
Robert L. Hinshaw, CMSgt, USAF, Retired (© All Rights Reserved)
as the sun beats down
beaches start beaming with life
hot beautiful days
Groovy giraffe Moots with his bony knees
Slips and slides and calls out “geez!”
Fashionable, yet, not dapper, not in any way.
His confidence is enormous, and here to stay.
Why do you dress in suits? We ask old Moots.
Most of the animals wear their birthday suits.
I like being persnickety and upscale, he said.
We made fun of him, and his face turned red.
Legislative insects in green suits
Gather in numbers every season
Mind bent to threaten green plants
With laws to effect extinction
The farmer they seasonally threaten
As usual is wiser and quicker in action
He collects green leaves and twigs
Into huge buckets he places them
One by one he gathers legislative insects
Puts them in the pond of green feeds
Excited, the insets eat all feeds and starve
Starved and weak, they eat one another
On inspection day he comes puffed up
Who is wiser, quicker, smarter in action?
Who gets the raw deal; who has the story?
Now tell me, who is the king of kings?
Helpless and hopeless legislators, bow
Kneel and ask the farmer for pardon
In heart they know green suit is for eating
In public they confess the farmer is traitor
Suits
I started work in an office, wore a suit that was cheap
and too small. They stuck me in a backroom that had
mustard coloured walls and no sunlight.
I sorted and filed bills that had been paid, and I never
understood the point of it. Yet it was one up from my
father, he worked for the council digging trenches by
spade- yes it was long ago- when it was hot he wore no
shirt muscular and tanned women sighed.
My father was married five times and died doing push ups;
or so mother said. After a year I understood i was not
going to be promoted, became radicalized and joined
the merchant navy. In New York I bought a splendid suit that
had enormous shoulder padding, I went to the office in
the hope of getting a proper job, a woman there gave me her
phone number, like I should be for hire!
The suit I have I wore seven years ago at a wedding in Brussels
a man of sixty five was getting married to a woman too young
for him. They were happy for six years then he couldn´t get it
up and in despair topped himself.
I will wear my suit if someone invites me to a party; it hasn´t
happened yet, I suppose it will not, old men, unless they are
rich, find themselves alone most of the time...
You bought your baby that cheap perfume,
that will chase everybody out of the room
You gave your baby a cheap anniversary gift,
then took her to a takeout joint where you don’t have to tip
You brought your baby flowers plucked from a garden,
didn’t have to spend no plastic, they got personally sent
You took your baby to the one dollar matinee,
it had a promotional free popcorn giveaway
You had your baby go get your cheap suits cleaned,
while you sat at home bank counting your beans
Life is full of plenty tricks
Called tactics
So apply secrets to your success
As salt to your soup
wear a cup of facial smile
To purge away your inner pains
See the beginning before it end
So you can end it before it begins