Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Adventures in Paralysis


Paralysis:
inability to choose a lesser evil,
owing to there being none least;
find suitable work two hours away or
continue the local treadmill of austerity;
pay the universe to pursue art and beauty,
at the mirrored risks of overwork or idleness.

Politics:
a legal way to empty the pockets of the poor
into the pockets of those who need no more;
there is money for denial, for cheating, for robbing,
but none to uphold the dignity of life for those living;
leave no tree standing, no stone unturned,
toil and boil ‘til you spoil the water and the soil.

Plight:
the list is longer than the hours for doing,
but a divided self cannot think or walk or do;
the band plays on and on in my head,
so that I cannot achieve deep sleep;
when I do slumber, I dream there is no coffee,
yet whilst I am awake, I brew too much.

Pickle:
to convert an object hierarchy into a byte stream,
thereby serializing, marshalling or flattening, or to remain firm;
to pluck cucumbers from their vines and shove them in brine,
or to serve them as a lovely salad with tomatoes, greens and beans;
kosher dill or gherkin, bread and butter, sweet or onion,
to serve them warm or cold, in sandwich or clear libation?

Ping Pong,
Ding Dong,
Sing Song,
Fling, Flang--Flung!

© 2012 by Elisabeth T. Eliassen