Plumbing

Listen to Marvin read Plumbing

We’ve got this stately, charismatic house,
Where the walls curve to meet textured ceilings.
And three bathrooms—showers, sinks, bowls—carouse
In matching pastel tile—bright, appealing.

But baleful creeping years intrude on pipes—
Three quarters of a century spawn rust—
Calcification (fate’s fruit, over-ripe)
Blocks flow—and antique elegance goes bust.

We’ll have to smash those lovely ancient tiles,
Tear out corroded plumbing, free the flow—
Accept the glaring scars, surrender style—
Acquiesce to age, our enduring foe.

I wouldn’t mourn those rotted pipes, heartsore,
If they were not my own life’s metaphor.
(7/24/11)

Posted in Aging, Beauty, Vanity

War Words

Listen to Marvin read War Words

Skirmish, assault, attack, war—
These genteel terms won’t do.
They’re names for children’s games,
Etymologically pale:
Guard, leap, attach, confusion—
Please!
We need to find proper words.
Illuminate, for all to see,
Hear, smell, taste,
Above all, feel
Just what we mean!

“At noon, this day,
We enter into a state
Of mutual evisceration
With our current enemies.
Under International Law,
We will burn each other
‘Till bubbling skin turns crisp—
We will maim and maul,
Inflict ripped pain,
And incentivize clever scientists
To invent new horror.
We will shred each other’s cities,
Vaporize,
Until one side, at least,
Discovers some semblance
Of sense.”

“Seared innocents?
Mere ‘collateral damage.’
Surviving troops,
Their dead
And twisted comrades?
National heroes, of course!”

The event?
Gloriously enshrined
In history books—
But without pictures
Powerful enough
To constrain new zealots,
And, of course,
Patriots!
(7/17/11)

Posted in Death, Pain, Politics, War

Need

Why do we
Large-brain mammals
Need so much more
Than all our neighbor creatures?

That lioness
Will kill for food—
But never for a larger tree
To shade her from the sun.

Life, everywhere,
Even the rudest insect,
Finds sustenance
The source of all content.

Consider how serene
This world might be
If we, settling for sustenance,
Content, with food enough
And shelter from the elements,
Gave up our endless wars.
(7/14/11)

Posted in Affluence, Greed, Vanity, Wisdom

Empire

Listen to Marvin read Empire

Inevitably, empires rot—
But how?
Sometimes plague
Or drought
Will do one in—
More often,
Complacent confidence.
Then come vicious
Well-armed Huns,
Seeking spoil—
Or cunning
Vampires,
Leeches,
Lice,
Hedge fund managers,
Merchant banks.

Wily creatures
Suck and suck
Until they leave us dry,
Wind-blown husks,
Subject to their rule.
What then?
(7/10/11)

Posted in Affluence, Greed, Today's News

The I.R.S.: Another View

For Robert Brambilla (and the Iota Café)

A correspondence from the I.R.S.
Arrived in March, addressing my distress—
Responding to a PLR request,
It gave a name and number—swift access!

I called his number, sure that I would hear:
“You’ve reached the IRS—press pound, press star—
Press, keep pressing until your eyes leak tears—
Traverse technology, confront bizarre!”

Instead, a brisk male voice proclaimed: “Hello.”
Stunned, I stammered, croaked, “Mr. Brambilla?”
“Yes, can I help? What do you need to know?”
Empathic, caring—no fierce Godzilla!

A humanistic lawyer! Priceless gem!
He taught me how to make and plead my case.
He organized his office (all of them),
I later learned, and issued this ukase:

“In order to preserve our human psyches
We will engage in noontime scenic hikes!”
Brambilla, Bob Brambilla is his name—
Humanity and justice are his game!
(6/18/11)

Posted in Inspiration, Taxes

Gayle

For G. L. A-C.

Recently a new denizen joined us
Down at the Venice paddle tennis courts.
Some call her the tattooed lady. Some fuss,
Stunned by her loveliness, as she cavorts

After an errant ball (the truth be told,
She needs a firmer follow-through). Her style,
Demeanor, all natural, plain and bold—
Her humanity apparent, no guile

Distorts her moods, her tendency to weep.
Divorced, with three grown children, and despite
Her charismatic charm, within, down deep.
Lurks sad, cyclonic darkness, stormy blight.

Crowds don’t please—she yearns for one man only—
Her self-assessed condition? Bare, lonely.
(6/30/11)

Posted in Beauty, Illusion, Pain, Wisdom