Wooden

A man’s success is not his own

despite his gifted hands;

a soldier needs a captain who

needs those who he commands.

He no more is his finest hour

than is his darkest turn,

and neither one can profit him

save what by each he learns.

His life is not a sum of strokes

he’s made along the way,

but hallways full of canvasses

he’s painted every day.

A man’s success is not his own

despite the heights he reaches;

all his knowledge dies with him

apart from what he teaches.

He is not the friends he knows

but friend as he is known,

not the wealth he’s harvested

but seeds that he has sown.

It is not faith on which he holds,

but faith takes hold of him,

a purpose not in depth of roots

but fruit upon the limb.

A man’s success is not his own

despite how he’s enshrined;

the measure of his life is found

in those he leaves behind.

Runt

Robbie and Bobby and Buster and Glen

climbed in the car at a quarter to ten

hoping to find something better to do

than hold down the trailer with softcore and brew

Robbie was driving and Bobby felt great

blown as the speakers in that Z-28

Buster and Glen shared a bottle of Jack

they passed back and forth sitting crammed in the back

Their mom was a mess and they moved quite a bit

living on welfare and gravel and spit;

three different daddies between the four brothers

countin’ on nothing aside from each other

Robbie and Bobby and Buster and Glen

found a good party and piled on in;

Robbie and Bobby sat down by the bong

and Buster kept both of those kegs going strong

while Glen took a walk ‘round the block with a girl

smearin’ her lipstick and mussin’ her curls

who never did mention that she had a beau

not that it mattered, but how would he know

that fool and his friends would be waiting inside

with heads full of liquor and fistfuls of pride -

words were exchanged and then somebody swung

and the whole goddamn party went mad and unstrung

Robbie and Bobby and Buster and Glen

sent that fool through a plate window and then

Robbie and Bobby knocked two down the stairs

and Buster used someone to bust up a chair

while Glen went outside, took a look at the lawn

and knew it was time for the four to get gone;

the guy had a pretty good bleed from his neck,

the girl was sobbing, the house was a wreck

The cops finally showed but a little too late

to do more than look for a Z-28,

no one had names and no one really knew,

it happened so fast that they couldn’t say who

and Robbie and Bobby and Buster and Glen

packed up and took off and weren’t heard from again;

countin’ on nothing aside from each other,

and that’s why I grew up without my big brothers.

Morgan

Had a lucky silver dollar

stamped in eighteen eighty-four

kept it with me

in my wallet

maybe fifteen years or more

It was with me when I found out

they had kicked me out of school

and the day

that I got hustled

down in Austin, shootin’ pool

On the day that I got married

and the day that I came home

to a pretty note

she left me

and some other guy’s cologne

On the night that I got cold-cocked

For a stupid smart remark

and the time

I got arrested

just for pissin’ in the park

On the day I got evicted

and the day that I got canned

and the day

the IRS said

that I owed ‘em seven grand -

So I sold that silver dollar

for a fifth of sour mash

and a pack of

Hav-A-Tampas

and a couple bucks in cash -

By the bottom of the bottle

as I drank it in my truck

couldn’t stop myself

from smilin’ -

guess I’m finally

outta luck.

Egress Largesse

Tell me that you
bought a card
and I’ll pretend you sent it.

I’ll say it was eloquent
if you pretend
you meant it.

We can tell our friends
we’re friends
to ease their apprehension,

say we didn’t hit the roof,
that it was more
ascension.

Tell me that you
bought a card
and I’ll pretend it flatters.

I’ll say that I wish you well
if you pretend
it matters.

Crossrode

Spun out at the intersection

of Mistakes

and Misdirection

pealing tires pouring smoke

as the brakes

howl through the spokes

twisted mouth of the suspension

pulled apart by

torque and tension

it’s a cold and quiet night

not another soul in sight

just a silent swirl of dust

falling back to road and rust

Closed my eyes, held on and skated

through the cyclone

I created

wheel slipping through my fist

wrenching something

in my wrist

hoped and prayed and swore and guessed

‘til it shuddered

to a rest

it’s a cold and quiet night

not another soul in sight

signal flashing overhead

dim and doubtful pools of red

Didn’t think to try the engine

left the keys

in the ignition

just collected what I could

of my shredded wits

and stood

didn’t even shut the door

tried to stagger

to Before

it’s a cold and quiet night

not another soul in sight

trying to get where I can’t go

from someplace that I don’t know

Somewhere southeast of Disgrace

when a streetlamp

lit my face

on a corner, felt a breeze

read the signs and

hit my knees;

broke down at the intersection

of Renewal

and Redemption

Corporate Compliance

Login,

click,

begin.

***

1. Code of Business Conduct:

Conduct all business

in code; a problem is

“an issue”.

To ignore an issue,

“table it” until it becomes

“an escalation.”

When your boss tells you

“let’s talk about that offline,”

stop talking.

When her boss tells her

“Let’s talk about that offline,”

start updating

your résumé.

2. Electronic Communication Awareness

Corporate email systems

are not to be used

for personal business.

There is no personal business here

because we impersonally

monitor

everything.

3. EEO and Harassment Policies

You do not have a race, color, or creed;

you are a number,

and you will be respected

as such.

Respect others

as such.

No means no

unless accompanied by a coy smile

in which case

it might also mean

“maybe, but not here”

(see also

Code of Business Conduct)

4. Ergonomics

It is not your imagination.

There is a multitude of ways

this innocuous little cube

can completely cripple you,

and if it does

it is entirely your fault.

***

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Please print for your records.

Expires in 12 months.