Bias

Posted on May 14, 2021 by sputterpub

The Hasids were a splinter group at first,
who added song and dance – so I was taught –
but grew in time so rigid, now they’re cursed
with viral ignorance and magic thought.
I see in Protestants a simile.
The radical reflected in their name
has paled into a grim conformity –
whatever they are now is not the same.

I try not to be bigoted, and yet,
I must confess I’m viewing with dismay
the “Willa Cather people” whom I met
when I was young and didn’t have a say
in schoolbooks. Simple answers aren’t smart,
but I think WASPs are faulty, in my heart.

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A Meeting with the Care Team

Posted on May 13, 2021 by sputterpub

Today’s a new experience for me.
I’ve been so fortunate to reach this age
without till now the grim necessity
to meet a team about a loved one’s care.
At 2 p.m. my bro and I will see
the therapists and docs who treat our mom.
She’s on the verge of her mortality –
how near or far the rim no one can gauge,
but we’re prepared to meet extremity.

(Magic 9)

Posted in Aging, Family, Health, Poetry | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

FWIW (para lo que vale)

Posted on May 12, 2021 by sputterpub

No resolution ever worked for me.
I mean, I’ve made some changes now and then,
but never were they triggered verbally,
supported by a rite, or sealed Amen.
And May the 5th was never naturally
occasion for commemorating when
an oath is made. But I’ll try, tongue in cheek,
to voice around another way to speak.

(Ottava Rima)

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Stats

Posted on May 11, 2021 by sputterpub

So even if the questions aren’t skewed,
and even when results are honestly
reported, the conclusions must be viewed
as only pertinent to massive groups.
Statistics just apply to magnitude –
when stuck on individuals, they fade.
But managed health care seems to go for crude –
applying big statistics onto me
is not the way good remedy’s pursued.

(Magic 9)

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To recovery verify here:

Posted on May 10, 2021 by sputterpub

I know a computer programmer,
who turned himself into a scammer.
But truly the fact’s
he’s no good at syntax,
and now the dude’s bound for the slammer.

Posted in Money Stuff, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Exit Laughing

Posted on May 9, 2021 by sputterpub

My best friend leaves me,
busy at what she loved most.
She exits laughing.

Posted in Love, Personality, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Calling All Cousins

Posted on May 8, 2021 by sputterpub

My parents were the youngest of their sibs.
My dad had older sisters (numbered four).
For Mom there’s near nine years between the cribs
her sister and herself were put in. Sure
I have some cousins, but they’re all those years
ahead of what my mom and dad produced.
And too we moved away. We had no near
extended family around our roost.

So I have sixteen cousins to recall,
and I possess some memories of meals
and visits, yet the fact is they’re a small
and quiet engine powering no wheels.
But now that Mom, their only auntie, shrinks,
I’m calling them and we’re refreshing links.

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Mat

Posted on May 7, 2021 by sputterpub

The moment I awoke I raised the blind
as usual, to garden-start the day.
My vision snagged on novelty – the kind
I can’t ignore and don’t adore. What’s new
is just a mat outside a door, designed
to clash with every natural garden hue.
The neighbors picked hot pinkish tones combined,
that promise to show dirt, to fade, to fray,
and make me wonder that they have in mind.

(Magic 9)

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ICU

Posted on May 6, 2021 by sputterpub

Our mom caught Covid and we’re all in shock
(she had the shots and mostly she behaved).
She’s in the ICU, and that’s a block
to seeing her. The diagnosis gave
us reason for the falls and the fatigue
that led her kids to worry she faced death.
Her viral load is low – her tests intrigue
the doctors, but for sure she’s short of breath.

Four days in bed and chair extort a toll.
Disorienting scenes have her confused
(she’s always tried to manage and control).
Frustration and complaints are quick-excused,
but how her will retreats gives me concern –
she may grow too compliant to return.

Posted in Coronaverse, Family, Health, Poetry | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Between the Lines

Posted on May 5, 2021 by sputterpub

The space between lines
frames nothing but eye relief
not good for reading.

Posted in Philosophy, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment