Vesuvius
When the earth shrugs,
some warnings are better
heeded. A little
smoke, some ash.
A knife point held to the chin.
Why listen at all?
The man in the big house hides in its vastness.
Surrounded, he walks alone.
People speak, but he hears only himself.
Meanwhile,
the mountain
belches
and the birds fly north
seeking firm ground
upon which to land.
Robert Okaji lives in Texas. The author of three chapbooks, his work has appeared or is forthcoming in Wildness, Vox Populi, Birch Gang Review, and elsewhere.
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Love the poem. How often we ignore the warnings around us, until it is our house that turns to ash!
Dwight
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Thanks, Dwight. Yes, all too often!
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Great poem. I like the ending. I am seeking firm ground as well.
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warnings are usually ignored andthe worst befalls us .Anice poem to look at
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