To the Sweet Dove From The Ark Of Language Flown

when seen from Space the forests seem ablaze

but here on earth I see right through the haze

though that won't show up on a resume

not a quality that much sought after

there where you must become

inured to laughter on a daily basis if you're to get by

in a country that doesn't pay to see you cry

because you stand out perhaps

in a premonitory way

you show up on time

in your best slant rhyme

and watch the ticker tape parades

for the faked out, staked out

poems they have laid waste to

while you pray for the remnant

and mourn for the sweet dove gone

or banished

who can say.

from the Ark of Language

in our day.

mary angela douglas 19 september 2021