Anniversary

What is the secret
Of your long and happy marriage?
They ask.

I stop and reflect for a moment,
Furtively glancing at my watch,
Counting down the minutes
Until I will again meet with her,
My rosy-breasted, eager young mistress.

I am too old for her,
But we both have found a momentary bliss
In the forbidden.

What is your secret?
They ask again.

My mind races to find a suitable reply.

~ Russ Allison Loar
© All Rights Reserved

Wrought

Seeing as how this magazine
Was clearly created
For those of superior intelligence, 
I figured I should be in on the game. 

The pages were heavy and deep, 
Filled with myriad analyzations of multifaceted topics 
I scarcely knew existed. 

What uses to a participatory democracy 
Do these cerebrations employ 
When we are governed by duplicitous morons 
Who will never read these pages 
Or consult the experts whose insights lie within? 

I continued reading until stopped cold by the phrase: 
“The predicament is multipronged. . . .” 
Multipronged? 
Really? 

Clearly, this dialogue had pierced the stratosphere 
On its way back home to some alternative universe. 

Several pages ahead an advertisement 
For a “Darwin Panama.” 

    A warm weather hat with Australian styling, 
    Handwoven in Ecuador from toquilla fiber.

O what “On The Origin of Species” hath wrought.

~ Russ Allison Loar
© All Rights Reserved

Unamused

I was immortal,

Aflame with youth,
Mad with wishing and wanting,
With joy and despair,
Running everywhere,
Lighter than air.

I shared secrets with my dog,
Whispered words of love to my cat,
Sang to sparrows and cackled at crows.

I picked my nose,
Hid my broccoli beneath the mashed potatoes,
Turned my bicycle into a horse and shot desperados.

I believed in dreams,
That they would lead my aching heart
To some kind of earthly heaven,
A life filled with joy
And love.

Yes,
I still sometimes belch,
Sometimes fart,
This inextinguishable little boy.

My wife is not amused.


~ Russ Allison Loar
© All Rights Reserved

#Alone

No sound,
No voice,
No laughter,
No eye contact,
No tears,
No facial expressions,
No body language,
No appearance,
No touch,
No skin on skin,
No embrace,
No kiss.

It’s the new friendship,
Texting and posting,
Liking and sharing,
Friending,
Friending,
All day long,
#Alone.


~ Russ Allison Loar
© All Rights Reserved

Contestants

Just another species
We are
The manipulators,
The malcontents
We are
The controllers of an uncontrollable world,
A world that will rise up against us someday
And end all this tinkering,
Making room for the next
Contestants.


~ Russ Allison Loar
© All Rights Reserved