Unruly rulers

leave havoc in their wake though

one of them can’t stay awake.

~

Is it possible

that our nation is best led

when he’s asleep at the wheel?

Now that we’re both here,

with our writing hats on tight,

on what shall we pen our will?

~

The heart was willing,

but the rest the rest of the body

just couldn’t be found.

As the mind wandered

here, there, and everywhere, it

missed its date with poetry.

~

 Wandering bodies

also somehow got sidetracked.

Is the world any the worse?

Live in harmony

with all God’s little creatures

‘til they gnaw the car’s brake lines.

~

It’s surely time for

them to put an end to such

destructive shenanigans.

Disaster relief

will be available if

you vote as he wants.

~

Bigly promises,

a sop to foolish masses,

never come to fruition.

We owe the living

more frequent visitation

than weddings and funerals.

~

I’m not planning on

dying or getting married

anytime soon. Come on by.

The weather has cooled,

but rhetoric remains hot

in the Ununited States.

~

Disunity reigns

in the land of the detained

and the home of the wage slave.

Young men wonder,

as old patriarchs die off,

if they want to fill those shoes.

~

The important thing

is for young men to find shoes

that fit them the best.

Carried away by

a slow moving breeze, that leaf

danced to its own tune.

~

Giving up control

and surrendering to drift

an existential ballet.

Our memo was missed

and it rained on the parade. 

We’re marching on, none the less.

~

In spite of it all

you managed to persevere.

We can’t ask for more.

May we honor those

who died and those who worked hard

to save those they could.

~

Yes, let us honor

those who labor for others

not those who grasp for themselves.

Sometimes the silence

is not for want of things to say;

it’s a traffic jam of words.

~

And sometimes when we

are finally able to speak,

there’s a collision.

Solitary crow

nibbling on remaining seeds

after other birds have fed…

~

Does that lonely crow

know that his endless crowing

is why wiser birds have fled?

Wearing many hats

makes even the coolest head

seek shelter from the swelter.

~

If you pull magic

out of your hat, you might be

able to get some relief.

According to Trump

the US owns the moon so

that must make him a luna…

~

And, thus, he consumes,

lands, gulfs, lakes, and distant straits

then sets his sights far higher.

Why can we never

be satisfied with the now;

worrying for tomorrow?

~

A question that’s been

asked and answered by sages

throughout the ages.

After the storm passed

the birds returned to their meal

which had been interrupted.

~

Their relish increased

by the synchronous pleasure

of food and beverage as one.

When atrocity

expands to ubiquity

how do we maintain outrage?

~

We use our outrage

to fuel action, compassion,

healing, and enduring change.

A nod was all Knox

could give the squirrels on this

humid and sweltering day.

~

Wise old squirrels, no doubt,

expressed appreciation

at the courtesy displayed.

We fight the good fight

when most folks have given up

even though we face long odds.

~

Long odds are better

than no odds at all so we’ll

continue to fight.

Yet another day

to sweat our way through, hoping

for a cooler tomorrow.

~

Tomorrow’s forecast,

if you can believe it so,

is for even worse.

Why do I suspect

all these great shenanigans

are all just smoke and mirrors?

~

He’s a wannabe

magician who is playing

tricks on you and me.

Awakened by cats

who didn’t get the message

that this is a day of rest.

~

Cats and dogs don’t care

about our concept of rest

so long as they get their food.

Passion has its place

but that place should never be

a tool to cudgel allies.

~

Who would want to be

an ally of anyone

who thinks cudgeling’s okay?

Next he’ll want to change

the names at our borders to

Trump North and Trump South.

~

Neither North nor South;

He’s craving one “Trumpica”

from pole to tropical pole.

Of all the places

that damned wasp could choose to sting,

why the scar on my right knee?`

~

Perhaps that spot just

looked like a lot less work would

be needed to make his point.

My how those deer run

when they catch sight of Knox

and me from afar.

~

Deer, like some people,

react with instinctive fear

when they see a big dog near.

Sleeping late is great,

until folks become irate

when the hour grows too late.

~

And who among us

has not overslept and made

someone quite upset?

Hummingbirds flutter

among the blossoms, pausing

to taste their nectar.

~

Pausing to enjoy

all the things not made by man

is an act too oft ignored.

Cleaning up messes

from yesterday road trip

occupied my feeble mind.

~

Your hands. were busy

and it was probably time

to give your heart and mind rest.