The Poetry Marathon

The Strength of My Faith

“Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation.”

D. Elton Trueblood

I have faith

that we can find the circumference of a circle

if we know the radius or diameter,

and someone remembers pi.

that trees, grass, and vines will eventually

overtake our human

manicuring efforts.

that my dog will go to

the first person available, on or before 5:30 p.m.,

and demand dinner if I am gone.

that the sun will continue to shine

and planets will rotate

after I die.

that I will not willingly jump from an intact plane,

ski down a snow-covered slope, or

climb a steep mountain face for fun.

Identity

Can’t stay a caterpillar and

become a butterfly.

Growing, hermit crab must

leave his shell to find another.

A tadpole, I need to

give up my old self to

become something fully new.

Still hard to shed an unneeded identity.

Take it off like an old white coat,

out of fashion, wrong size,

uncomfortable in summer.

Need freedom to grow.

Keep the title,

discard the responsibility.

Giving up a medical license is not

becoming “Other”.

My dog will still know me.

Build Back Normal

Can’t wait to get back to Normal.

How most people did things

in the Before Times,

the way we dressed, behaved, interacted.

Old normality wasn’t Normal.

Perhaps it’s too late for a Better Normal.

Already roaring back to the normal of

mass shootings,

wealth and justice inequality,

scruffy appearance,

loud, rude, and thoughtless behavior.

Ignorant and proud of it.

Aspire to a New and Better Normal.

Caring for and about

ourselves and others,

treating people with

kindness and consideration.

Valuing our history and

striving to learn.

Losing God at Dillard’s

I lost God

in a bathroom stall

at Dillard’s Department Store.

Knew he was gone,

felt his absence in the

empty echo of faux marble.

Arrogant, unmasked people

shuffling around all post-Covid,

not all vaccinated.

Hollow laughter, pod people

buying stuff again,

gobbling food court fare,

like it never happened,

though it’s still going on.

God must have left

the mall years ago.

I was just too busy or

self-involved to notice.

I bought boba tea,

sipped it as I left to

look for God at

the grocery store.

The Lawnmower/Computer Relationship

I do not kill computers.

I merely overtax their tiny chips

with unusual attempts to work around glitches,

until they shut down and wish for death.

No animosity, really.

They simply don’t understand my thought processes.

Computers are simple, not creative,

unable to appreciate my artistic nature.

Although never friends, we work together

like incompatible co-workers

forced to sit at adjacent desks.

My husband kills lawnmowers.

He doesn’t hate them,

but never met a small engine

he couldn’t destroy.

A matter of expectations, really.

Expects them to mow down

3-foot-tall prairie grass

in 100-degree weather,

while sucking in dust.

Theirs is an employer/employee relationship,

like Ebenezer Scrooge and Bob Cratchit.

Before Darkness

A blinding flash of light.

So hot it fried

our skin, roasted our muscles,

melded our bones to the furniture.

Disintegrated houses to piles of sand.

Boiled oceans, making fish chowder.

Soup, soup everywhere…but not an animal to eat it.

Dimmed and cooled,

steam rose, then hardened.

So cold it covered

the barren land with ice,

froze the air, making snow slushies

Daiquiris, daiquiris everywhere…but nobody here for Happy Hour.

Just a big ball of ice

when the darkness came.

The Truth Is Out There

Standardized reporting system for UFO’s

Please circle one:

Did you report this sighting as an:

Unidentified Flying Object (UFO)

Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP)

Unexplained Physical Object (UPO)

I was unable to identify the driver of the UAP due to:

Tinted windshield

Loss of bowel control during near-miss situation

Being a notoriously unreliable Navy pilot

The UPO appearance was:

A deflated weather balloon

A large bottle of Stoli

A Lucky Cat

What best describes your thoughts about extra-terrestrial beings?

Alien rights are Human Rights

Build a big, beautiful Space Wall

The only Good Alien is a Dead Alien

What are your concerns about reporting the UFO?

Stigma. Other Navy pilots won’t talk to me

Reprisals by big-headed beings with huge eyes

Marco Rubio says he believes the truth is out there

Cinderella’s Takedown

We knew they were wicked,

just didn’t know how.

Stepmom and two daughters,

one big as a sow.

Working with the Department,

along with the Prince,

I sought their employment

to get evidence.

I emptied their chamber pots,

cooked, swept the floors,

while searching the backrooms

and listening at doors.

I bowed and obeyed

while they teased and berated.

I played my part well

while I took notes and waited.

One evening while mending

her gown for the Ball,

I heard her conversing

with men in the hall.

To the dance, several kilos

of powder she’d bring.

I’d finally discovered

their drug smuggling ring.

I sneaked off to the Ball

with the help of some mice,

confidential informants

with blood cold as ice.

The Prince was there waiting

to lower the boom.

Stepmom got arrested

as she entered the room.

One of my “siblings”

took off out the door.

I ran after, and caught her,

but slipped on the floor.

I lost my best slipper

while aiding the sting,

But still got the Prince,

and still got a ring.

The Gift of an Oklahoma Summer Rain

Starts with claps of thunder,

cracks of lightening,

shock and awe at dawn.

Rain in sheets pelts the roof,

water blows sideways at walls and windows.

Easy to pretend we’re vacationing

in Haiti during a brief hurricane.

Niagara Falls on the front porch

from the leaky downspout.

Plants soak up moisture,

cracks in parched dirt absorb liquid

like expensive skin cream,

becoming smooth again.

One lone bird chirps out,

“Can’t take much more of this!”

Raindrops slow, other birds chime in,

“Holy shit! What was that?”

Clouds pass, sky lightens.

Birds shout, “Let’s eat!”

We hear trickling sounds,

intermittent drops hit puddles and leaves.

Storm brings cooler temperatures.

Can sit outside awhile before

sun bakes us again in the summer kiln,

worried our glazes will crack,

risking second degree burns,

from touching the steering wheel,

making grass dry and crispy,

clothes and hair droopy and soggy.

Antisocial Media

Lies are Truth.

The Earth is flat.

Vaccines cause autism.

Different is bad.

USA has the best health care in the world.

COVID-19 is a hoax.

Click of a mouse,

touch of a screen sends

falsehoods catapulting through

posts, comments, chats.

Electronically transmitted

pictures of smug faces

mock the truth.

Modern technology spreads

deception and distortion to

multitudes of naïve,

antiquated, outmoded believers.