Saturday in CinCity

-
Suddenly

by Louis Simpson

The truck came at me,
I swerved
but I got a dent.

The car insurance woman
informs me that my policy
has been cancelled.

I say, "You can't do that."
She gives me a little smile
and goes back to her nails.

Lately have you noticed
how aggressively people drive?
A whoosh! and whatever.

Some people are suddenly
very rich, and as many
suddenly very poor.

As for the war, don't get me started.
We were too busy watching
the ball game to see

that the things we care about
are suddenly disappearing,
and that they always were.

Comments

  1. Rosaria WilliamsMarch 28, 2009 at 4:28 PM

    Yes, we were too busy watching the game to see what it was doing to everything else we cared about. Well said.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Teresa aka TessMarch 28, 2009 at 5:56 PM

    There's too much going on and too much being lost.

    ReplyDelete
  3. debraMarch 28, 2009 at 6:25 PM

    Ain't it the truth.

    ReplyDelete
  4. CarolineMarch 28, 2009 at 10:14 PM

    suddenly poor! boy it is the truth. change too quick!

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownMarch 29, 2009 at 5:37 AM

    i wont pretend to fully understand your post but i totally understand your feeling behind it.
    things are happening fast here too........

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownMarch 29, 2009 at 7:14 AM

    Lisa--hello, "Lady of the Laundry." You're not missing much, just the same old "How did we get here?" and "Run the bastards outta town!!"
    Tell you what, wish I had seen with my very own eyes this Goldwater For President sticker--that would make me laugh:>)
    Life, indeed, does come at you fast and, if you're lucky, giggles as it runs past.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Erin DavisMarch 29, 2009 at 7:45 AM

    This rings very true to me. I think we had our attention distracted for many years while several things were being eroded out from under us! Great poem. The picture with the Goldwater sticker is great!

    By the way, feel free to post/link to my poem on your site. I would be honored.

    ReplyDelete
  8. UnknownMarch 29, 2009 at 9:03 AM

    Yeah, like running too fast and not really getting anywhere. Great poem and greater photo!

    ReplyDelete
  9. dsMarch 29, 2009 at 9:29 AM

    "the things we care about are slowly disappearing and that they always were." So true. So scary--and so true.

    ReplyDelete
  10. V-GrrrlMarch 30, 2009 at 8:57 AM

    the things we care about aren't disappearing for good, just from sight, buried under the unimportant, the inane, the immediate. But they're still there and we can unearth them and put them up high in our lives, in their rightful places.

    ReplyDelete

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Hey, thanks for your thoughts and your time:>)

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