Laurels #2

clipping nose hairs

with a pair of scissors

poor old man . . .

from the looks of things

the ear hairs will be next

Michael H. Lester

Los Angeles, California

I left my foam heart

in a triple espresso

after the barista

served me decaf

by mistake

John Budan

Newberg, Oregon

shooting targets

against an old red barn

until

an angry wasp

returns fire

Robert Miner

Houston, Texas

rolling stones

can’t get no satisfaction

no, no, no

and we sing along until

parents turn off the hi-fi

Dean Okamura

Torrance, California

walking the dog,

texting my daughters

over breakfast

doing the “quick” crossword

to prove I’m still alive

Amelia Fielden

Wollongong, Australia

the sound

on the video call

isn’t working . . .

my oncologist shows me

her fun side, her skills in charades

Xenia Tran

Nairn, Scotland

irked

I curse my iPad

Siri types quietly

I don’t respond

to that remark

Susan Weaver

Allentown, Pennsylvania

county sheriff

pulls me over

for a closer look

my little red

convertible

Randy Brooks

Taylorville, Illinois

I woke up this morning

with dewdrops

in my shoes

Lord knows I got them old

transitory blues

Rick Jackofsky

Rocky Point, New York

déjà vu

at the gas station

again

I hold in a fart

near a stranger

Jacob D. Salzer

Vancouver, Washington

glamorous

she sashays down the street

eyes half closed

she misinterprets waving hands

and plants her shoes in doggie doo

David Lee Hill

Bakersfield, California

eight kids race

out of two cars

down to the beach

my dad raises his hands

“They aren’t all mine.”

Karen O’Leary

West Fargo, North Dakota

morning stroll

along the boardwalk

my greybeard man

announces loudly

I am still his best girl

Marilyn Humbert

Sydney, Australia

another

late winter

side of leftovers—

she gives him

the fingerling

Lorraine A Padden

San Diego, California

flickering candles

icing on the cake

another birthday

here on time

wisdom running late

Patricia Pella

Greenville, Rhode Island

in the mirror

my image now you’ve gone

if not for love

I wonder why a cat

keeps grooming herself

an’ya

Florence, Oregon

i second The Bard:

parting is such sweet sorrow

as i face the mirror

with a comb in my left hand

and a brush in my right

William Kerr

New York, New York

my efficient husband

took over shopping and cooking

post-retirement

now I’m so completely well-fed

I can’t stand it

Diane Funston

Marysville, California

my printer

has a mood of its own—

I give it orders

it clinks, clanks and grumbles

then spits its response at me

Keitha Keyes

Sydney, Australia

Christmas morning

the kids pretend

to still believe

so they don’t spoil

Mom and Dad’s fun

Tim Cremin

Andover, Massachusetts

with a little

moderation, I reckon

I can spin out

the pleasure of this cookie

by at least three or four bites

Andrew Lansdown

Dianella, Australia

Zooming

on gallery view

startled faces

of my book club pop up—

we’re a weird Brady Bunch

Margi Abraham

Sydney, Australia

as if I needed

confirmation

the teacher doesn’t

get under her desk

for duck and cover

Tom Clausen

Ithaca, New York

like Hemingway

I wrote a six-word memoir

but mine’s

way too

wordy

John Tehan

Bourne, Massachusetts

now this kind of death

I could get used to

la petite mort

la petite MORT

LA PETITE MORT

Susan Burch

Hagerstown, Maryland

two-year-old armed

with alligator hand puppet

in hot pursuit

of the fleeing

grandfather

David Chandler

Chicago, Illinois

Old Town

beautification

years in the making—

phase one

a new parking lot

Cynthia Anderson

Yucca Valley, California

Papa Bear

takes a shine to Goldilocks

but decides

not to make his move

until she puts on some weight

Peter Larsen

Lake View Terrace, California

deer don’t read

the signs are all there

quiet in the forest, please

but the owl

doesn’t give a hoot

Linda Conroy

Bellingham, Washington

95%

of all our families

are dysfunctional

5% in denial

1% of us perfect

Charles Harmon

Los Angeles, California

to sweeten my breath

I abstain from garlic . . .

kissing you

I regret

you didn’t

Susan Yavaniski

Cohoes, New York

“if the earth is flat”

as some say

my cat would have

pushed everything

over the edge

Jack Douthitt

Fox Point, Wisconsin

eye surgery

has sharpened my vision

alas did nothing

to fix my inability

to wink at you

Elaine Riddell

Hamilton, New Zealand

my reputation

for being

the only little girl

who could imitate

Jimmy Durante 

Kathabela Wilson

Pasadena., California

scientists say that

some black holes eat more . . .

the Milky Way

is being sucked

into our son’s bedroom

Mark Teaford

Napa, California

expecting

a big summer crop

of zucchini

I make a list of neighbors

who gift Xmas fruitcakes

Billie Dee

San Miguel, New Mexico

must have

seen us naked

& heard us singing

that moth banging

the bathroom light

LeRoy Gorman

Napanee, Ontario

holding hands

while crossing the street

I regret

he was no lover

just keeping me safe

Jackie Chou

Pico Rivera, California

security checkpoint—

I wonder if

the customs agent

enjoys this pat-down

as little as I do

Michael Dylan Welch

Sammamish, Washington