April 2020
Bio Note: After many years of practicing law in NYC I happily traded legal writing for poetry.
I have been widely published in journals and anthologies and have published three chapbooks and one full
length collection. The best writing advice I ever received was "stop arguing to the jury... we get it".
I have struggled to comply.
Aubade From an Insomniac’s Desk
It is 5 am,
house silent,
husband asleep,
my computer senses it has been a long night,
the unsteady touch of my fingers on the keys,
fears woven into a worried poem.
Determined to cheer me, my dear MacBook
erases all mention of cruelty and suffering,
replaces each with stories of bravery, and kindness,
urges me to return to bed,
promises when my head hits the pillow
a dreamless calm will recharge me.
I slip back into bed but it is too late
the morning light is creeping in.
I smile at the arrogance of this new day
lording it over cyberspace, which,
despite technological hoopla
remains blind to the glory of a sunrise,
blind to how fickle things are for us non-bots
and how adept we are at re-routing in broad daylight.
Check-up
It’s my mind’s eye
I say to the weary doctor,
Can you sort me out?
My children have aged,
my love
sports grey,
lines once sharp
shimmer colorless.
In the mirror an unfamiliar woman
blocks my view.
I shoo her away but
she does not appear to scare easily,
seems stunned.
Please, Dr., it is the end of March,
Spring and Summer tease.
She so wants to be ready.
©2020 Anita S. Pulier
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