RED POPPIES

In the spring
when the air is still crisp,
I plant red poppies.
Neruda was a friend of
this flower
which took great strides
to push itself from the earth
past the heavy rocks and dirt
toward the light.

And each day
I sleep and rise
by way of these bright petals
to view the world through the lens
of a simple flower
crimson and fat
growing in my garden,
a living altar.

To love is political.
So I tend to these red poppies
which reach down
with their long winding roots
to put love back into the earth
perhaps they will find
those who are lonely
those who are alienated
those who are angry
as Neruda would have wanted.

“The Personal is Political”
By Jennifer Barone

(“The Personal is Political” is a quote by Carol Hanisch)

The personal is political
The political is personal

what to eat
where it came from
salmon in barrels
or swimming in the toxic sea
I ingest industrial waste
immigrant workers in the fields
I digest political unrest
I drink the wine of blood and tears

because the personal is political
and the political is personal

what to wear
this dress made in Asia
I button up couture fabric of
sweatshop labor
sewn hands of children
of men and women working long days
no time off, no benefits
no rest for the weary
I zip up the American working jeans
of the American working dream
not made in America anymore

because the personal is political
and the political is personal

who to love
man woman
woman man
woman woman
man man
no one
myself even
after white dresses, black ties and lies
some are still not allowed to make a vow
to sign on the dotted line

because the personal is political
and the political is personal

Goldman Sachs on Wall Street
or the mom and pop corner store
struggling to make ends meet
who pays more taxes
who evades taxes
taking taxes that pay for your street
taxes on everything we buy
and yet we can not pry
the tax man’s fingers if we tried
pay checks of blood money
inflated CEO bonus money
that flees our country
into Swiss bank accounts
of robber baron thieves
moving jobs overseas
follow the money trail of greed
from your very own wallet
if you’re watching
now they are coming after
our social security

because the personal is political
and the political is personal

the air that I breathe polluted by unrestricted companies
the water that I drink
controlled by the government of my city
politicians have their hand into electricity to run the machine
the garbage men
and the homeless man
picking through my bins
the bus and the muni
on time, over time, cut the lines
but raise the fares
property taxes on the home you want
but can’t afford to buy
your slice of American pie
living under a blackening sky
just waiting for the hospital bill to
arrive in the mail
in one incident will make
your retirement run dry
see there is no imaginary line

because the personal is political
and the political is personal