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You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. - Abraham Lincoln
Silence gathers like dust
on the piano lid—unplayed songs folded
into brittle paper wings.
The hummingbird feeder hangs empty,
sunlight glinting off dried nectar.
Each day our hands relearn
the slow syntax of stiffness.
Morning pills rattle accusations
in amber bottles. Who will read
the warning labels when our eyes retreat?
Childless. No daughters to decipher
our fading ink. No sons
to steady the wobble
of ascending stairs. Lincoln’s shadow
lengthens across the porch:
Tomorrow arrives hungry.
You cannot feed it yesterday’s excuses.
We scan horizons for villages
built of shared tremors
where neighbors become
soft euphemistic nouns—caregiver, listener, stayer~
before the light fails completely.
In hiding that women are locked outside of california's democracy we are not the same
Present has no further tense to be meaningful is to be regarded as dis-wanted
The past tensing of crime upon a woman’s singular right to pass…….
This is a bearing which cannot be prevented from demand of answer
As to why and whom has allowed this to transpire
Concern and Certainty are appointed as law during these transgressions
Certainty does not to exist as fault is currently attempting to be absolved
There is no legal means for this function in the universe
Physics commands the mortal physique and as such we must itemize a budget
From the parameters of physics not to accost the day
Sunlight provides all manners of energy on earth
No hearing is need to destroy the present
Time has lapsed for celebration
The enmity clause is called for in euphemistic disregard of payment
Payment for services rendered
Tax has been liened farther than constitution can hold
The back pay of motel keys is due forthwith in thousand oaks california
To private citizens who have endured unendable slander and liable upon there house
ETCHINGS
“Let me show you my etchings,” he said,
With a euphemistic smile.
The sort of situation,
Where she ought to have run a mile.
But, as an art student, she reckoned she might
Have something useful to gain,
And, at that moment, her mother’s advice,
Never entered her brain.
He took her down to his basement flat
And gave her a glass of wine.
Then he actually showed her his etchings,
Which she took to be a good sign.
They sat close as he turned the pages,
His arm loosely round her shoulder.
And she found it quite exciting,
When he started to get somewhat bolder.
But when he asked her to pose for him,
Alarm bells began to ring,
And then she recalled what her mother had said
Of the dangers of such a thing.
So she made up her mind, did up her blouse
And ran up the stairs to the street.
Where she took a deep breath and took the first bus;
Her education complete.
ONE NIGHT STAND?
It seemed so simple at the start,
A one-night stand; no questions asked,
Then back to hum-drum daily life.
Her face, all innocent as she approached
And perched beside me at the bar.
“Would a gentleman buy a lady a drink?”
Lowering my gaze to the too tight tee shirt
And the all too short mini, I wondered
About the ‘lady’ bit
But then of course the ‘gentleman’ bit
Was a generous description.
A dry martini was her choice
(I would have sworn she’d say a G and T)
And so I joined her, even though
I’m normally a whiskey man.
And, as we sipped, the thought occurred to me
We must have seemed to all the world
A sophisticated pair
And afterwards, as you’ll have guessed,
We wound up in my bachelor pad
For a euphemistic cappuccino.
After which my memory is rather hazy,
Till I awoke with sunlight streaming through,
And the space beside me cold and empty.
A note by the kettle said a simple, “Thank you”
I thought that was the end of it, but no,
The nightmare had just begun
23rd September 2022
Chapter 1 Poetry Contest
Sponsor - Matt Caliri
Love diffusion,
Love recursion.
Disobedient to the external world we remain,
Never expedient - our love - never going to detain,
The more memories we obtain,
More sweetness we gain.
Surrounded by LoveBirds
As our world lits,
Nonpareil in the universe, cognisance
Filled with the spectrum of our igniting consciece
Amorousness aroma drizzling through our soul so intense
Immaculate kiss mystic sense.
We are unique and thence optimistic,
Purely euphemistic.
Faith essence, mutual defense,
Upholding bless.
Enlighting grace,
From lovers embrace.
We are conspicuous by our entailing qualities,
Prosperous by our personalities
Forever connected entities,
Favoring our the inequalities.
Surpassing any misconseption,
With forgiveness iteration.
Love of art, the art of love,
You're my colorful art, my love.
My life. My rainbow, My sweety
For eternity.
take away the pain
pull it for my simple minded
cultural institution
unofficially assassinate
the view to the deed
give all who know,
a shiny old award of singing
dripped in federal money
covered dew
shape it up
in lie-berries of congress fruit
and blend it up
to taste as euphemistic
And has it been two thousand years--
That one eternal Gift bestowed
To calm the fury of our fears--
To bear for each a mental load?
Yet, in this frail, restrictive skin
That each must shelter from the cold
Of winter death, inclement men--
We need a time to be retold.
We need to insulate from ice
By donning fantasies of mirth.
We need to feel our lives suffice
By wearing ritual rebirth.
With euphemistic evergreen,
With hope of peace hung on a tree,
We warm our pagan needs to mean
The heart of Christian mystery.
carefully laid down one by one
penning the words as they come
choosing ever so prudently
a poem for ignominy
a tacit agreement quietly kept
between a mind and body adept
some coherant ideology
based on etymology
euphemistic ideas at best
lying explicits up to rest
compromising the mind inside
to make its speech coincide
with what most people want to hear
in their surrogate heart to tickle their ear
now the popular circumlocution
playing it down by substitution
negative vibes are now in the plate
served up instead of outright hate
dissolution has overtaken divorce
makes a better illusion of course
adultery and stealing just to begin
is no longer thought to be living in sin
"consenting adults" and "doing your thing"
"number one first " and "having a fling"
unthankful children are just being cool
the shiftless hustler no longer a fool
trust and loyalty things of the past
friends are only transitional cast
the savant has become a clown
as ideology touches the ground
COPYRIGHT © 2009 C Michael Miller
via Duboff Law Group LLC
WRITEN IN 1980
pleasurable feelings keep coming
affording me satisfaction in gratifying presence
euphemistic excitement flow in harmonious taste of likings
settling to form coagulation of pronounced closeness
involvement enthusiasm ruptures
pleasant sensations fusing into agreeably congenial
an experience of the evening
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