“A View Anew” by Barbara Leonhard

Fear cripples and blinds as 2022 
wanes to a whimper
of arthritic joints and failing eyesight.
Is anyone else exhausted by nonsensical injury
that December will review?

The sparring Naked Kings hoard bitcoins.
Push souls out of the Cloud.
Shred decency into rags.
Distill water into poison.
Fight over center stage.

Pack their coffers with our rights;
their coffins with our children, the elderly, refugees -
any “Other” race, sex, creed.
Humanity, a continent to divide and conquer. 
The bag of harm is heavy with drones.

The New Year comes to my door 
a virtual stranger,
holding out pamphlets of promise,
ignoring the sign,
No Solicitors!

This new bag - a thing of feathers -
The promises flitter into glassy eyes.
My hopes reimagine my nightmares.
I can live another day
the way I create it.

Copyright © 2022 Barbara Harris Leonhard
All Rights Reserved

New Year’s Quotes

Barbara is author of Three-Penny Memories: A Poetic Memoir (EIF- Experiments in Fiction, 2022). A poem from this collection was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2022. Also, on Spillwords, Barbara was voted Author of the Month of October 2021, nominated Author of the Year for 2021, and recognized as a Spillwords Socialite of the Year in 2021. In November 2022, she became Editor for MasticadoresUSA. Barbara enjoys bringing writers together and has been sponsoring open mics and readings on Zoom during the pandemic. 

Editor: Barbara Harris Leonhard

Amazon Best-Selling Author

Three-Penny Memories: A Poetic Memoir (EIF-Experiments in Fiction, 2022)

Pushcart Nominee, 2022

MasticadoresUSA is open for submissions. Send your submissions to meelosmom@gmail.com

About Us and the New Submission Guidelines

Facebook: Barbara Harris Leonhard /barbara.leonhard

Twitter: @BarbaraLeonhar4

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Linked In: ExtraordinarySunshineWeaver

Mastodon: @BarbaraLeonhard@msdtn.social

Feature /Divider Images: by GDJ on Pixabay