A poem written 5-15-08. Observations of an empty night. |
Sitting in my quiet house With a cigarette burning And pen in hand I feel uninspired With the urge to write Tugging at my brain. Yet still there's nothing Of much substance Coming to me. All I hear is the relentless Barking of the neighbor's dog. It never stops and I wonder What it is that has excited him. And, beyond that, I hear the wailing Of a police siren. It sounds like it's emanating From around 8th Street--- It's equally annoying as the Continuing barking of the dog. But as I inspect the idea--- Toss it around in my head--- Maybe they both are saying something, Etching a story, important or not, Into the annals of time. Perhaps the dog is telling me How annoyed he is by the alleycat That keeps teasing him From the other side of the fence. Or maybe he's speaking of how He would love to run alongside They young boy pedaling his bicycle Down the wet sidewalk in the Last rays of sunlight. And maybe the police siren Is laying forth it's own Story of waning importance About a domestic dispute Or someone robbing the liquor store--- Or even a homicide near the train tracks. I suppose it could even be That they are only speaking Back and forth to one another, Their voices meaningless and Completely devoid of all the Intellectual importance that I'm trying to give them. It's very possible that The police siren is nothing more Than the pursuit of someone speeding Their vehicle down main street, And the piercing sound of it all Is what's caused the dog to Bark in the first place. Nonetheless, they speak for the present While I aimlessly ponder the future. |