Tag Archives: short poems

Slow #poem #poetry #disillusionment #endworkerexploitation

Slow  

Slow

because even after

endless hours of effort

the profits aren’t mine

Slow

because my body is stuck in service

of creating unnecessary things

Slow

because with each day

of this unfair exchange

my mind slips further into acceptance

So I’ll fight while I can still fight

to slow

the productivity

that will never benefit me

Image description – photo of the James River which is mostly obscured by a rusty transmission tower, the view underneath railroad tracks, and an expansive building. The blue afternoon sky is slightly hazy and grayish.

What inspired the poem Slow?

Promotions and promises of better pay, and maybe, just maybe, a chance to rest and take proper vacations- these are carrots, pulled on strings by corporate executives who profit off the backs of employees who give up so much of their lives yet receive hollow promises and inadequate compensation in return. People are asked to do more work than their bodies are meant to perform and once they manage to meet harsh deadlines or produce an outrageous amount of revenue, even bigger results are asked of them, all while employers use the common tactic of decreasing the number of workers available to perform tasks.

Workers are being shamelessly exploited and underpaid in the United States. Where does it end? What must employees give up in order to produce the results that should never have been asked of them? For some, the answer is to slow down and take care of themselves, to take time off instead of giving all their time to a corporation that doesn’t care about them, and to fight back against ridiculous deadlines by decreasing their pace to one that doesn’t feel like it’s pulling them into an early grave.

Profit and Bones #poem #poetry #greed #endforprofithealthcare

Profit and Bones

Bottomless thieves

keep the furnace fed

with our bankrupted bones

Each stolen dollar and death

is fuel for the profit flames

The corporations collect

while they destroy

Image description – photo shows a section of oak tree leaves that appear burnt. The burned looking leaves are enmeshed with a tall fir tree. The ground below looks dry and lifeless.

I’ve been thinking about the tragic train wreck that is the for-profit health insurance industry in the US, because how could I not? How could the fear of the worsening situation not weigh on my mind? The past few decades have seen health care become a luxury. Insurance companies make their profit by charging a ton and denying coverage for needed services. People survive on pain medication because surgery is too expensive. Medical care is put off because people fear the resulting bill, and for good reason. The for-profit health insurance industry bankrupts people, lowers quality of life, and shortens longevity. And it doesn’t even bother to apologize.

Health insurance CEOs and shareholders are raking in the profits by refusing to cover medical care wherever and however they can. Hospitals and pharmaceutical companies aren’t innocent either, with their ridiculous costs. The idea of medication existing but people not being able to access when they need to without losing one’s home or having to choose between food or medicine is not some horror movie subplot. We’re living in a dystopian nightmare brought to life by greed. Many politicians’ careers were funded by that greed.

Will the situation ever be resolved, or will each generation grow more accustomed to the worsening lack of access to affordable medical care? The suspense isn’t fun.

Beneath Unsuspecting Feet – #poem #poetry #nature #horror

Beneath Unsuspecting Feet

Shadows thrive beneath

unsuspecting feet

Vines trap and feed

Forest arteries

Image description – the photo is of a hiking trail at Robius Landing Park in Virginia. Along the trail is a tree with long vines that wind into an intricate knotted pattern. There are shadows on the dirt trail. The bushes and trees lining the pathway are a healthy shade of green.

For this short poem, I made the forest the hunter, taking what it needs from all who enter. The beautiful parks and hiking trails of Virginia continue to inspire both my fiction and my poetry.

What the Trees Hide #poem #nature #peace #shortpoems

What the Trees Hide

Peace grows beneath the trees

that gave their leaves and limbs

to hide the seeds

of hope

from the searchlight moon

Image description- photograph is of the night sky. The moon is in the center of the photo and is surrounded by clouds and trees.