John F. McMullen
Pyrophytes
“Pyrophyte: Any plant that is resistant to fire,
or that needs fire to propagate.”—Wiktionary
This morning I’m breathing smoke
from forest fires two thousand miles away
and the people who … Read more
Humane Killings
For Howard Debs
Wire Cutter Magazine gives the best advice
About how to kill black ants that have invaded
Your home. And though ants aren’t as bad as lice,
they … Read more
Bad Policing
Should we still identify them as the police?
Patrol the streets for “harmful” black flesh
Bullets and tasers they quickly release
On melanin ones, they chase or catch
Do they … Read more
Dispatch from the West
It’s fire time again.
So far so good.
Fog in the mornings
Erases the trees.
Shafts of sunlight
Break up the mist,
All of it, … Read more
Love Note of the Fish
Their teeth are like ours as they jump through the air
invasive but no one cared about Asian carp brought here
to tame plants, algae, snails.
Immaculate, their dark skins … Read more
#BringDannyHome
for Journalist Danny Fenster
There is a myth in Ovid’s Metamorphosis
that is hard to shake. Cassandra bound to rocks
at sea, the seer silenced by Apollo, truth bound
by … Read more
Goodbye Disney World
I won’t be visiting Florida soon,
not even taking my kids to Disney World
Too conservative for my tastes
A governor who breaks hospital records
for the most covid positivity … Read more
The Real Olympic Heroes
Awaiting the torch, the flame
that ignites and invites
the world of sport to gather,
to meet and compete
in a spirit of revered competition,
respect, and acceptance.
Honorable countries … Read more
A Poem for Jeff Bezos
When the void was new, its origins were not blue
but a vacuum turned green,
ill with this viridescent epidemic –
we … Read more
The Courage to Pause. Simone Biles.
Easy to admire the fluid grace
the obedient agile body built with
hours of sweat and striving sacrifice
Easy to overlook the price. Pain
not just the muscle burn and … Read more
INPUT FOR THE HOUSE PANEL ON THE JAN. 6TH INSURRECTION
(an epiphany sans wise men)
Devout
standard-bearers
journeyed, followed their Star.
Believers obeyed its credo.
Proud Boys, MAGA, QAnon.
I AM
the only One,
shined the Star, who is Worthy.… Read more
At the stadium: Nationals-Padres game, 7/18/21
Night fell on us broiling, dense clouds, deep rout
from the other team, beer haze, roasted snacks.
You could say we were ready to come out
to the ballgame, the … Read more
Coronaville
It’s peaceful out here on the ledge, equidistant to outcomes.
The sound of wind has replaced my racing thoughts.
I can breathe.
I can be.… Read more