zumpoems

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)