Relative Something

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if it was possible
to tell it all
in the little span of time
as it takes to peruse
the lines of a rhyme
and life could be whittled
all neat and tidy
into the two hours it takes
to present feature-length films
would it belabor the point
of hashing the thrash
and dashing the dash
to dot all our “i”s and cross each the “t”s
to speak all the words
which we too often do
that mean so much less
than “Hi, how are you?”

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light
from the basement
dripping down his calf
flashes
of brilliance
washing past too fast
in moments somehow singled
out of barely half a glance
nighttime dances blithely
changing as if cast
from pages overfilled
with endless dreary words
fire breathing backwards
beneath it all at last
warning off the ghosts
watching
thrill-enhanced

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the slowly ticking drama
of every thing as nothing
swirling manipulations
manufactured stipulations
stressors preconceived
lightly dangling listless
smashing moment’s notice
lunging almost laughing
barely ever stopping
as a check to reality
waiting without effort
diligence paused, as if unguarded
insidiously seeking just that chance
intent on breaking open
the ice that is in sanity
to open well-worn fractures
forged whole in perfect time
starting over in undoing
grief already undone

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try as we might
to comprehend
the incomprehensible
with all that we’ve got
when what passes for logic
is chock-full of holes
and the bottom keeps dropping
from under the rainbow
our best intentions
mere shattering glass
the wrong people speaking
their version of facts
democracy screams
for its promising past

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alone together
in this decision
to go it alone
after all these years
together
it’s not that different
from her stint
as a national consultant
where she traveled
from one coast
to the other
I reheated leftovers
and piled up
her mail
how hard can it be?
she’s been deployed
but not to a war
there’ll be visits
iPad FaceTime
she’ll be in one city
one time zone away
waking up this morning
alone
is much different
she’s gone
I can run through the house
screaming
and no one will hear me
she cleared out
her perfume
from the bathroom shelf
this will be great
I can have things
the way I prefer them
except for one
important detail
she’s gone

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