The Demise of Mr. Smith
He was an evil man, bullying, belligerent.
Then, he hit her.
On his phone coming down the stairs,
I screamed,
he startled and tumbled down,
landing in a grotesque arabesque.
I sniffed his nose, satisfied,
returned to my place in the sun,
purring, with my tail neatly tucked in.
Wake Up!
There is nothing like
loving pets
a dog and cat
both rescues
both quirky sweet
and comical
They are my alarm clock
punctual proud and prompt
they wake me each morning
Marmalade first
head butts and purring songs
pouncing on my back and
springing off again
Asha’s turn
her specialty
a wet willy
with that
cold nose
If that doesn’t work
nibbles to my neck
The Call and Response of Spring
The trees stand tall and proud
their branches dip and bend
with the wind’s gentle push
the Kelly-green leaves
sway and dance their
call and response
The squirrels chase each other
spiraling up and down the great oaks
and slim pines across the ground
and back up again chattering their
call and response
The birds glide and soar
and sweep around and past
each other until they take a
timeout on a branch high
or low to the ground singing their
call and response
Birthday Discovery
For twelve years
my birthday
was celebrated
on April 7th
And then
Searching for a vet record
I came upon my birth record
A truth was revealed
my birthday is
April 9th
Birthday, Oy
61 Oy, I don’t relate.
Feel like thirty-eight.
Looking in the mirror
I hear my father say,
“Who the hell is that?”
I contemplate,
who is that?
Salt and pepper hair,
double chin,
turkey neck,
Oy.
Don’t look!
Go for a swim instead.
Revel in the compliments.
Ambiguous Sunrise
Exhaustion permeates our beings
autopilot kicked in last Tuesday
or was it this Tuesday?
None of us know
it’s the holiday season
you know
the time of year chefs
bakers and candy makers
are in full steam production mode
the time when sunrise can be
sunset and sunset can be sunrise
the lights the same
the fatigues the same
Whether it’s sunrise or sunset
we’re on automatic
cranking out the croissant
Rolling out the pie dough
knotting up the bread dough
and shaping the marzipan
Circumference
Expanding circumferences abound
pandemic bellies world around
Baking bread loaves perfectly round
with mounds of butter
to wash it down
Circle back around
bound for seconds
even thirds
No wonder rounder bodies abound
Martini Heaven
Chilled glass
four parts gin
one part vermouth
extra olives
Ice cold and breezy
smooth and piney
notes of evergreen
And the olives
salty effervescence
It’s heaven
~~~
Chanah Wizenberg received her BA from Hunter College in English and Creative Writing. Her poetry has appeared in several magazines and anthologies. Chanah has been a professional ballerina, a pastry chef, and an English teacher. She resides in Raleigh, North Carolina with her dog, Asha, and her cat, Marmalade. This is Chanah’s first feature on The Short of It.
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