Wordplay and abstractions by Lawrence “Mack in Texas” Hall
I Don’t Know How Life Can Go On
Life can be an impossible hurdle
Just now I want to hide and turn turtle
My breakfast within me has begun to curdle
Because for the first time I lost the Wordle!
Your Hair is Like a Flock of Goats
“(Y)our hair is like a flock of goats
Frisking down the slopes of Gilead.” -Song of Songs 4:5-6
Even in a farming community
This awkward compliment you’d better keep
So ask her this joke (if she grants you immunity):
Do goats have mohair than sheep?
(“Do goats have mohair than sheep?” is an old, old, old joke.)
When Caesurae Go Bad
The dramatic pause-dash that – holds its breath
Is meant to create a – sense of tension
For dramatic effect; that’s what they – say
John Wayne uses the – caesura a lot
But since neither writers – nor editors – know
How to employ the worthy – caesura
They just – shoehorn it in any old place
Dramatic effect even in a – recipe
Stop using those dashes for pointless pauses
And save them for really important – causes
When Abstract Concepts are Seen Floating By
When abstract concepts are seen floating by
The situation might require new thoughts
Assembled with worn-out hypotheses
Through this twisting night of long butter knives
Abstracts are comfortable in their discomfort
Begging one’s soul for logic and spare change
But also willing to go away unanswered
And quite at peace in having disturbed yours
When abstract concepts are seen floating by
Better just turn over and get back to sleep
But Which Jaw Drops – the Upper? Or the Lower?
An advert assures us its product is jaw-dropping
If true, this loss of body parts would be painful
And which part of the purchaser’s jaw drops?
The upper jaw? The lower jaw? The set?
Given our recent experience with Nile.com
We can’t be sure of both jaws for one price
The advertisement might be for a set of jaws
But the small print says you have to pay extra
For a complete jaw-jaw
As a dime-store guru from the 60s might ask
What is the sound of one jaw dropping?
Dropping
Dropping
Dropping
(Clunk!)
After the Wedding
The night outside was cold; the fire was warm
And so was she, all golden in the light
That gentle light, a glass of wine in hand
Her eyes, her lips sweet tributes to God’s grace
We spoke of love, of what was good and true
And beautiful, of promises freely given
Of trust anointed through those promises
And then she put her glass aside, and whispered:
“I love you so much; you need only ask
Since now for you only will I slip off
My mask”
LogoSophia Magazine 