Quadroset
i. dawn
the hillstrings lace the pale garden
shadows are lifted
teasing the ground
beak your piece says the mother bird
for worms are precious food
a tranquil birth
and yet no clue
of the chaos yet to come.
ii. rush hour
screeching skidding
piercing ears
no art could match this pace
crying howling
curses threats
bodies pushed around
smoking burning
greedily fuming
factories wait in ambush
oh no can't stop must be off
my time is much too dear
look around this ghastly ground
motion is the coming price
the virus that will spread throughout
gain begets a further need for gain
and soon nothing will gain to stand.
iii. salad bar
radishes
cucumbers tomatoes
garbanzos bacon
vinegar and oil onions roquefort
croutons almonds greenbeans
more and more and more and more
oh yes I have to try the lettuce
iv. the evening
the culminations of aggravations
the see-saw city glare
mixing masses of migraine messes
must this mottle meet the mind
old sayings still limp around
and appetizers drop on the ground
the news is needed if it's not misreaded
everything remains and continues
like an out of control hoover vacuum cleaner
sucking everything up
count the days forget old ways it's all a daze
and deeply dives the disordered ditch digger.
-- zumwalt (1973)
zumpoems 