Poetry Magazine, Ken McKee, February 2001

Poetry Magazine

Ken McKee

USA

Ode To The Sixties

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna start me a rock and roll band.
Play my harmonica and tambourine,
Plant my seeds and live off the land.

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna put on my tie-dyed threads.
Plug in my black light and 8-track player,
And groove to the Grateful Dead.

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna take part in a march for peace.
I guess I long for my youthful days,
When I could actually outrun the police.

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna live in a hippie commune.
Where I'll sing and play the night away,
And meditate under the moon.

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna survive on tofu and berries.
I'll visit my folks who always asked me,
"Aren't you getting a little too hairy?"

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna leave before it's too late.
Better now than tomorrow, I tell myself,
Before I'm too old to think straight.

I'm going back to the sixties someday.
Gonna go where I can be me.
Where the earth was still a cosmic place,
And everyone was blissful and free.

We can't go back to the sixties, you know.
It's not important anyway.
Just do what the poets tried to tell us,
And live our lives for today.

Where, Exactly, is Forever?

Where, exactly, is forever? How far
Past the North Star? Doesn't matter.
I'm in no hurry.

With butterfly wings that shimmer,
Like the mist from a thousand
Translucent rainbows,
I sail to far away planets and
Soar on cosmic winds.
Pause briefly on Earth's child to savor
Emerald cheese. Lime flavored.
Greet Venus with a smile as she awakens,
Anticipating the return of her lover.
Leap over to Mars and make crimson mud pies.
Umm, cinnamon.
Run rings around Saturn when he isn't looking.
Quickly now; he doesn't play games.
Pay homage to Jupiter,
Oldest and wisest.
And Neptune,
Guardian of the seas of the universe.
No, Pluto, I haven't forgotten you,
My faithful friend and companion.
Grasp the tail of a blazing comet and
Race around the Sun as
Twinkling stardust vapors mark our past.
Dive headfirst into a black hole
Just to see where it takes me.
At least it's not Uranus.
Capture a spark from Mercury
And bathe in its brilliance until
I radiate inwardly,
With phosphorus luminescence.
Then just for fun, and for no other reason,
Quench my thirst with a sip from
The Big Dipper. Or whiten my upper lip
Through the Milky Way.
Finally, pausing for a moment, I
Look around as the stars welcome me back.
Then, a revelation! "There are
No aliens in space; we are all conceived
From the same source."
I know now, my journey has begun.
You mock me, but I'm being Sirius.

Where, exactly, is forever? How far
Past the North Star? Doesn't matter.
I'm in no hurry. Forever is as close as
I want it to be.
When I'm going home.

Credit Card Lunacy

The credit card guy with the stern voice
Called me about my late payment,
Right before the credit card lady with the pleasant voice
Called me about a fantastic offer.

The credit card guy said it would be in my best interest
If I paid off my old credit card.
The credit card lady said it would be in my best interest
If I received a new credit card.

The credit card guy said I needed to make minimum payments
Or my credit would be ruined. Forever.
The credit card lady said my credit was so good
I was already pre-approved. Forever.

The credit card guy asked if I could cover the interest
By sending just $10.00 a month.
The credit card lady said I would never be charged interest
If I sent just $10.00 a month.

The credit card guy said he would turn me over to a collection agency
If I didn't send monthly payments.
The credit card lady said I could handle the monthly payments
And avoid a collection agency.

Neither the stern-voiced credit card guy,
Nor the pleasant-voiced credit card lady
Heard a word I said to them.
Maybe I'll get a new credit card
From the credit card lady
So I can pay off the old credit card
From the credit card guy.
After all, they both work for the same
Credit card company.