—Lilac Photos Courtesy of Public Domain
BAD TOOLS
A bad workman always
blames his tools.
But are the tools
defective, or
simply wrong?
I used a metal
comb to pull out
nails from a wall.
The comb was
in my hand,
the pliers in
a toolbox.
Maybe the comb
was a bad idea.
I could blame
my comb
for the
plywood
dust in my hair.
HEAD AND HEART
Under a bridge somewhere
was a conversation between
Head and Heart.
Head promised to write
a prose poem about
my body, but my body
wanted to catch up with Heart,
for a second chance
at new beginnings.
Heart only wanted
to lie in the grass
and fall asleep.
THE WEATHER FORECAST WAS WRONG
You are an unmarked package
at the front door,
thinking you
avoid detection.
Icicle fingers
hang off the roof,
the better to grab me with.
You sell your teeth
out of a briefcase to bite
the day draining
out of the river,
to sew it up in snow.
SHOES
Feet are lonely
without their shoes.
Even the feet
that washed ashore
without their bodies
in British Columbia
couldn’t part
with their shoes.
Ask any woman
to give up her shoes,
even shoes stored
in boxes for decades.
She’d rather part
with her husband.
MORNING RAIN FORGIVEN
I forgive the tears
that slide down my window,
rivulets of snail trails
that sparkle in the morning sun,
to gather on the sill.
Is it me or someone else
who cries?
GET LOST
That's the way it’s always been:
You say, “Tomato,” I say, “Get lost.”
If you were a fly, I’d swat you.
But you refuse to leave,
buzzing round my ears, a nuisance,
until I eat that ripe, red fruit
and you go out to garden.
__________________
Today’s LittleNip:
BUZZZ
—Nolcha Fox
I flit from diversion
to distraction,
fueled by caffeine
and adrenaline.
I’m so buzzed
I can talk to electricity.
___________________
Welcome to new SnakePal Nolcha Fox this Mother’s Day, 2022, as we smother ourselves in lilacs (and hope you can smell the scent)! Nolcha says she has written all her life, starting with poop and crayons on the walls. Her poems have been published in Lothlorien Poetry Journal, The Red Lemon Review, Dark Entries, Duck Head Journal and others. Her chapbook, My Father’s Ghost Hates Cats, is available on Amazon. Again, welcome to the Kitchen, Nolcha, and don’t be a stranger!
___________________
—Medusa
For upcoming poetry events in
Northern California and otherwheres,
click on
UPCOMING NORCAL EVENTS
in the links at the top of this page.
Photos in this column can be enlarged by
clicking on them once, then clicking on the x
in the top right corner to come back to Medusa.
Would you like to be a SnakePal?
All you have to do is send poetry and/or
photos and artwork to
kathykieth@hotmail.com. We post
work from all over the world—including
that which was previously published—
and collaborations are welcome.
Just remember:
the snakes of Medusa are always hungry—
for poetry, of course!
wishing you a
Happy Mother’s Day!
