Cold Spell II
Winter lingers on
stubbornly refusing
to allow Spring thaw.
The sparrows sit
on icy benches
crying to a chilled chorus
for warmer days.
Erasure
Escape from reality
is an American trait.
More then any other people
we have avenues of diversion
that take us away
from ideal functioning,.
too easily obliterated
by tv programming, the internet,
until we no longer remember
how to do things.
Vistas
I no longer know
how to relate to history.
When I was young
they taught simplistic stuff
which fooled most of the students
most of the time,
until the Cold War
changed the mindsets
of innocent kids
cowering under desks.
Simple beliefs no longer had answers
for questioning intelligence.
The pace of life accelerated.
Even though we lived longer
existence became more complex
as capitalists separated
the rich from the poor,
computer technology separated
those who could compute
from those who couldn’t adapt.
And the people were divided
by wealth, caste, ethnicity
and the lords of profit knew gladness,
for the illusion of democracy
that grated on the privileged
was finally fraying away.
Give Us Your…
The melting pot is broken.
The last tendrils of unity
submerge in alien neighborhoods
subtracted by foreign languages
further separating peoples
fraying the promise of joining together
for immigrants from all walks
building one nation,
with a promise like no other,
as we watch the ebbing away
of the American Dream.
Dig Deep
Just because they’re down in the mines,
a difficult, demanding job,
it doesn’t mean they’re dumb.
Smarter miners know beyond doubt
coal mines won’t open again
and the jobs won’t be coming back.
It’s easier to cut off a mountain top
to get at valuable coal
even if it destroys the earth,
rather then dig deep, expensive holes
and employ lots of miners
for high wages and benefits
that does not profit the owners
who do not care what harm they do
as long as they make more money.
Hopefully the smarter miners
will help elect a new President
who won’t lie that he’s bringing back jobs.
About the Author:
Gary Beck has spent most of his adult life as a theater director. He has 14 published chapbooks. He has to his credit numerous collections of poetry, short-stories and novels. His original plays and translations of Moliere, Aristophanes and Sophocles have been produced Off Broadway. His poetry, fiction and essays have appeared in hundreds of literary magazines. He lives in New York City.
