A Poem by Ray Bish

ghastly graffiti

      ghostlie goons holding bic-lit spoons

        to leering bright moon

  to grovel and vacate their bowels before the

            pimp of the dead. they said

       “we shall always crave, dave”

            mostly dead martyrs

       idling their motors (& threats)

they bided the seasons like diseases

     & painted the street-sleepers red

   just like the monkey paw said

        pumpkin shards fall

    through calm napalm pall

 & land squids crawl through

    midnight lit shadows

      as the old man wheeses

          like some crucified jesus

   pale tremblin children chewing fistfulls of ritalin

 & shuffling their bloomers to cover their tumors

     while puzzled muzzled angels text

                                                the next rumors

         of mongerdom and martyrdom

                                           and boredom

     & all the while nile crocodiles

   snore. their bellies filled galore

 with whine and bread

                       and sanctified gore

`

   lurking poe raven mirthfully wavin’

             gloom hued plumes

        at icey isosceles mephistopheles

         who’s gesticulatin’ and litigatin’ 4

                                         his or her due

quoth:  “dear sir or madame

          how elegantly you scam

  but

     let’s pivot a bit and revisit the score:

          what part

        of ‘nevermore’ is unclear to you!