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Saturday, March 31, 2007

SURGE

by David Plumb


What light went out in the sand
Is this the dance we signed up for
I mean Jesus Christ I am not
Nor can I get the smirk off the President's craw
You just know there’s a car on the back lot
With a bad muffler
Such a deal he says
Somewhere between the words Terror
Democracy and Freedom
But what about the kid?
Not old enough to vote
And his leg is in the slop
Across the street from an oil well
It’s one of those days
In this case the day before Christmas
Well Santa was Turkish, then German
And now he’s a blow up doll
And some guy on camera is punching
The ten foot balloon that is him
So what if she gets a little chemo
Or Trump has weird hair, or Ms Dip
Showed a breast or unzipped
I mean what a cross we schlepp
Who the hell is watching the sheep
Take a little walk to cemetery
Leave flowers, a picture
Of what was him
Feel his innocence, his determination
The uniform, the infinity
Listen to the grass grow
See a gun, a kiss
A gift of sunlight
The other side of the moon


David Plumb’s latest fiction book is A Slight Change in the Weather. He has worked as a paramedic, a cab driver, a, cook and tour guide. A long time San Francisco writer, he now lives in South Florida . Will Rogers said, “Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip.” Plumb says, “It depends on the parrot.”