For L. Ferlinghetti (1919-2022)

For L. Ferlinghetti (1919-2022)

 

 

 

Yellow is the color of

the solid highway line

that is illegal to cross

when the curves of life

are imminent

and the signs say don't breech

 

in youth, we made two lanes into three

the imaginary one

took us gambling in an arsenal of smokey rings

and joints passing as eateries 

where the eggs flipped hearts over easy

and the waitress sang the blues

 

White is the color of

the dotted lines

where we signed on to freedom

in between the spaces

but never read the fine print

that it would all end soon

and we still had not passed

our ideals on to the millennial's

 

as the perennials bloomed

but not in the flower child's hair

that was now old and graying

 

the blacktop has no color now

we took an exit to a marginal existence

dumped the flower pots

from the back of the pickup

 

flipped the last smoke out the window

and drove the speed limit

into forever.

 

 

erin-cilberto

5/3/23 

Reviews

[Ken e Bujold]

superb write J. LF was a grand writer, but sort of got lost in the shuffle of his more famous friends. You capture a great deal of what it is to be the artist passing through this linear time line we call life.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

thank you, Ken.
Appreciate your kind words.
j.