Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Quartet Quandary



Image borrowed from Bing


Quartet  Quandary 

“There are issues of trust, deep trust, in the way the members
of a string quartet learn to interact with one another.”
--Yo-Yo Ma.

I.
“My life has been a dance that has walked a song 
that was spoken”--Maya Angelou

There can be, 
there is poetry in the naked motion
            of sports heroes,
                models,
                body builders & dancers;
where gluts flex boldly over
                                    undulating thighs,
                                                     bulging calves
                                                                  & expressive feet;
where Abs stand in rigid rows
                                    like militiamen on parade,
where deltoids partner with 18” biceps,
                                     with triceps as wing men;
where hands stroke their lovers,
                      sculpt faces from granite,
                                paint giant flowers that resemble
                                vaginal vessels of loveliness. 


II.
“If you are a dreamer, come in, sit by my fire, for we have
flax-golden tales to spin.”--Shel Silverstein.

I tell you we must dream about Peace even
               while we wield the weapons of War,
               follow orders,
               take innocent lives;
while we witness others among us
               waving Confederate flags,
                            calling our President
                                             a mongrel nigger monkey,
or standing with oaken billy clubs
                            & preventing black Americans
                                             from voting;
while we suffer the staggering ignorance of
homophobic
sexist
racist
misanthropic 
elitist bullies who
         dearly love to keep their boots
                                         on the beautiful necks
                                                                   of white doves;
for Peace is achievable, but it has to be fought for--
     Liberty has never been a mere entitlement;
                        it is reward for our sacrifices.

III.
“The word was born in the blood, grew up in the dark body,
beating, & took flight through the lips & mouth.”
--Pablo Neruda.

And what is the Word--
                          Love, Larceny, Lunacy--
                          Bastard, Brotherhood, Buttock--
                          Equality, Elephant, Evergreen--
                          Hindu, Hate, Horny--
                          Rose, Rhyme, Rigor-mortis--
                          Ferrari, Fellacio, Fire--
                          Cheetah, Callous, Conflict--
                          Breast, Bathroom, or Buick?
And how is the Word communicated best,
               through speech, epithet, prose, or poetry?
And the answer is YES,
               each word a gift, the birth
               of a child, where you are cast as
                                                               Creator,
                                                                Parent, & Pariah
in equal measure.         Yes not No, the sonorous sound of your voice
                               with the breathy hum of your inner harmony.


IV.
" A man can get by for 70 years without a piece of ass, but
he will die in a week without a bowel movement.”
--Charles Bukowski.

My grandfather often used to tell me,
                         “ The day will come, my boy, when you would
rather take a good crap than have
                           a terrific piece of ass.”
Though I am not aboard that boat
               yet, I can attest to the fact
               that Cascara Sagrada
can be a gentle friend when life’s conflicts
                                             lead to a bewildering state
                                             of constipation.
We are certainly not fooling our colons,
                for it is keenly aware of when
                                             we are full of shit. 
                          
                          

Glenn Buttkus

Posted over on dVerse Poets

Would ou like to hear the author read this poem to you?

21 comments:

Brian Miller said...

in the first, i would agree there is poetry in most anything...if we are willing to look for it...the second, freedom is often defined by what we are willing to sacrifice in order to get it...ha, and we are certainly, very full of shit...lol...

nice g...good to see you sir...

HA said...

It is so good to read you again.

I: The way you proclaim that poetry is everywhere is really effective. And I'd say, poetry is where we find it.
II: Peace is a thought that has to be ingrained in the collective conscious... well, I steal a concept of Karl Jung and have molded it but that is something I believe in. Your definition of liberty is remarkable.
III: Word is a word of a word for a word. Interesting musing there.
IV: Ha! Nice one..

:-)

mrs mediocrity said...

I always laugh when, after a good bowel movement, my dogs goes racing around the yard with pure joy.

Your word play is fabulous, and a perfect puzzle of poetry. I'm still smiling!

brudberg said...

Great set of reflections Glenn.. There for sure can be poetry in anything.. But only the poet will see it. The last one gave me a great chuckle.., but for sure the poet's battle for peace is my favorite.

Marina Sofia said...

The sublime and the ridiculous of poetry and poets all in one pithy poem! I especially loved Part III but had to laugh at Part IV.

Victoria said...

I'm still laughing at IV--but keen observations on life and poetry. You are so talented, Glenn.

Claudia said...

smiles... some nice quotes and nods to poets sir... bukowski is one of my all time favs and love that silverstein quote especially...the dreaminess...smiles... i wanna join and sit by that fire a bit..smiles

Grace said...

That ending made me laugh ~ It also calls to mind the power of the poet to move us, in a dance or through war or through the written word ~ I am loving the quotes and words Glenn ~ Thanks for your lovely gift ~

Unknown said...

man did I miss you... I certainly agree - poetry is in EVERYTHING, from light to dark, in life and death... and ugh, full oh shit... we are...

Bridge2vision said...

What a buffet! I love that you started with Maya. I didn't really have a sense of poetry before I got to my 30's and Maya gave it to me as a gift exactly when I couldn't go another day without it

I believe how you moved elegantly from Maya to constipation in the space of a poem is something she would have had her chuckling heartily.

vivinfrance said...

A hilarious ending to a poetic A-Z. I had to read it again to regain the different moods engendered by each section.

Myrna R. said...

You start out so belligerent, raw, defying. You capture that which poets explore. And you end on a hilarious note of truth. I love the idea of not taking ourselves too seriously. Loved this poem!

Kathy Reed said...

Another smorgasbord of thoughts to consider; by putting the quotes first, then your response, one is taken through a slide show, but more importantly what a poet sees, feels, writes about....anything that moves us and most everything does.
Your ode is very much appreciated.

Joseph Hesch said...

Whenever I feel like I'd like stop by a bar and listen to a smart friend tell me about life -- his, mine, everyone's -- in art or even just within the Grand Planless Plan, I come to your little corner of the world, Glenn. You never disappoint.

Thank you, my friend, for all you do for so many who are cursed with the (hopefully) chronic malady of trying to make sensation into words and words into others' sensations. ~ j

Linda M said...

Great forthright honesty. Yes, writing poetry certainly does require a lot of trust. I also appreciate that freedom and peace are worth fighting for.

RMP said...

this was an enjoyable ride. so much packed into these three. you had me nodding, shaking my head, and laughing....

Abhra said...

elitist bullies who
dearly love to keep their boots
on the beautiful necks
of white doves;


Truly - each word is a gift. I love how you progress in your poem. Inspiring.

Mary said...

Heh Glenn, I always enjoy your unique approach to any prompt. Enjoyed all your quotes. And your reverence /irreverence. Ha, the last stanza made me smile. But it has the ring of truth. Smiles.

Beachanny said...

How true, how brave, how modern, how fresh, how original, how conscious this piece is! No one in our group treasures or measures a word more than you, my friend. You are THE Ambassador of Words, a compendium of experience AND knowledge, and a giver of ideas AND inspiration. Keep crafting, my friend - for Art is its result!

author.nara.malone said...

A unique journey through poetry in all the forms it takes. Love your creativity here.

Sherry Blue Sky said...

OMG this is a fantastic write!!!!!!