BEAUTY PARLOUR BLUES
c. Sara L. Russell 6/10/98
One day, at the beauty parlour,
Miss Betty Bea Vanilla
found herself in the waiting room
with a large, depressed gorilla.
“What are you in for?” she asked,
as if nothing were amiss.
The gorilla sighed as it replied:
“Electrolysis”.
(From Sara’s multimedia book Pinky’s Little Book of Shadows
published by Kedco Studios
***
A CAT’S ADVENTURE
c. Sara L. Russell, 1999
Half past twelve.
The old cat stirs himself awake,
all bristling, black fur and bleary jade-green eyes.
A flicking ear, then a long yawn follows.
He looks at the palm of my hand, blinking slowly.
There’s some kind of toy there,
fluffy outside, catnip inside.
H’mmmm.
He considers it for a moment.
Can’t eat it.
Can’t fall asleep on it.
Forget it.
The jade eyes slowly close.
It’s time for a hard-earned siesta.
(From Sara’s multimedia book
Life, Time and the GoldenHour ofSleep on
Kedco Studios’ CD ROM “A Way With Words”
***
Small town rip up fade to black
fire flies dance over the remains
of our high school love you and him
rocking that double wide I couldn’t
get myself out of the brush my eyes
darting from window to window
trying to get catch a glimpse
love and sex behind wind beaten
screens I light a smoke feel him
going where I’ve been so many
nights with you walk to my truck
try and drive you out of my memory
the rising sun saying hello to my
sorrow drenched lips
***
“…BY ANY OTHER NAME…”
By Paul Malécot
Be not so afraid
of “getting it wrong.”
that you get nothing
for it is
in our mistakes
that we are truly human
It is thru our “humanness”
that we may find again
our innocence
for only as children
can we taste the Rose
without even
the awareness of thorns
which are but
our own paranoia
For, We are the Rose…..
***
MIDTOWN REVIVAL AND THE FINGER OF FATE
Wednesday, midweek, after Rose Monday
and Shrove Tuesday pass without notice,
a quiet man appears in Chicago (chosen
because Irish-Catholic); a Wonder Worker
returns but the villagers suffer Lent,
its long fast from belief. He shows
them visions of paradise.
Police atop geldings disperse the crowd
that gathers. Move along. Nothing
to see here. Move along. Morning”s
business traffic reaches high pitch,
drowns out comforting words. Grey suits
passing drop coins at his feet. Shoppers
stare into store windows, try to recall
that face. Was it “As the World Turns?”
A bit part. No! “All Our Children”!
Looks like it”s going to be a scorcher,
reports a passing taxi, its radio loud
cluttering thin air over raging curses
of the gutter class some of whom
urinate against the daylight wall
behind the Wonder Worker, baptized
in their river of night before cheap
drinks. Traffic lights rotate the three
basic laws. Go pause Stop. Beginning
middle and End. This is the One Way.
Two boys in colors stab, rob, then rape
the Wonder Worker. He is left to die
at the Water Tower. A finger points
toward heaven. A street vendor finds
his spot defiled. He shutters: What?
Christ Jesus, not again.
***