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Best Poems From
LAURENCE OVERMIRE
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189.
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Dying Breed
Most writers embark upon a legacy of prose
the most lucrative venture in an unyielding sea
only a fool would choose
poetry
to chart the circumference of a life
no profit to be gained
and
very possibly
obscurity in the passing
unless
there be some deeper truth
to plumb
a reward of soul
unfathomable to the surface
of a word.
(Previously published in The Odeum, Nov 2001; The Poet's Porch, Jan 2002)
Laurence Overmire
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190.
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e.e. cum c (a tribute to e.e. cummings)
e. e. oh oh you saw what where)
principles laid (remarkably in tight too
no one diddle daddle up) down (sides
round a bramble stick thorn in
hollow heads? fly mooned cow space
low-downed Revolution tat-a-rat tat
Oh! you hit apple pie ala
mother lode:
tipped open shut doors
spilled milk muddied minds
blast wide furnace words
sharpened Keyholes edge
wise) e.e. oh oh ho ho ho
my tip tap off hat (you!
(Previously published in Aileron, Winter '99)
Laurence Overmire
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191.
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East Side Ladies
The East Side Ladies
are all very chic
fresh furs on their shoulders
diamonds in their ears
their shoes are never dirty
and their dresses always pressed
and they speak in clipped sentences
and sound like Cary Grant
(with a higher pitch, of course)
One wonders why they hold their chins
a little higher than their heads
and their eyelids but half-opened
in a look of proud contempt
their chauffeurs rush to please them
limo doors snap open-shut
then
they disappear behind the glass
and one cant see them anymore
But then one never could.
(Previously published in Some Words: A Place For Poetry, Feb 2000)
Laurence Overmire
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192.
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Educably Retarded
I think back on what I learned in school and most of it was a waste of time.
Twelve years of public education and Ive forgotten 99% of it.
Why didnt they teach us something useful?
Like auto mechanics.
We all drive cars, but most of us havent got a clue what those guys are talking about when they rip us off for repairs.
Or credit cards. Shouldnt we have been trained how NOT to use a credit card so we wouldnt go broke?
I mean, geez, I wasted a whole year on trigonometry. I never use trigonometry. Or chemistry! Or biology! Not once have I had to dissect a frog in my adult life.
They could have spent that time teaching us something worthwhile like
How to ask a girl out for a date.
Or What to say to her when you get one.
And there could have been a more advanced course for seniors called
How to put on a condom without looking like a complete idiot.
See, this is good, practical information people need.
Or how about spending a few semesters on how to be a good parent.
After all, thats the most important job most people ever have
And hardly anyone has the faintest idea how to do it.
And people wonder why the world is so messed up.
(Previously published in The Inditer, March 2000)
Laurence Overmire
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