Billy Little

1999

OUR BEAUTIFUL ENEMY
shiny black bangs falling in shiny black eyes
wild-eyed darlings barely taller than their weapons
languorous barechested juvenile enemy
wiping their fear drenched brow with their shirt
500,000 wistful curlylocked virginal enemy aroused
can’t you see them squirming on the satin sheets
of your waterbed what a harem 500,000 applecheeked enemy
wouldn’t you rather be plucking your mandolin
beside the mahogany hot tub
while your sinuous enemy dances and jiggles the tambourine
you’d love to be wriggling naked in the arms
of the mouthwatering enemy wouldn’t you
love oh a bushelworth contortionist enemy’s intimate embraces
erotocide dreamboat enemy celestial teen enemy fleshpots
than die from steaming pieces of poisonous metals
piercing your flesh
how could you  “civilized” even contemplate
burying these tender buds unbloomed
our sweetpea enemy
our gentle and googly eyed enemy
our impish and gracious enemy
our thoughtful and creative enemy
our chickenfeeding enemy
our goatmilking enemy
our breakbakeing enemy
our waterhauling enemy

not to mention our tender and anxious enemy’s
heavenly parents’ melancholy stupor
our undernourished enemy’s blessed infant unable to suck
holy mothers milk coagulated from fear
sacred teachers songs in flames
sainted healers cures scrambled and unrefrigerated
enemy poets radiate prayers electrify laments
in candle lit shelters
not to mention our enemies sexy little kitchen help
unable to clean their serving trays, their ladles and their stewpots
our enemies humble plumbers their dormant snakes
zealous recyclers afraid to compost
our enemies solicitous librarians without a reference
our enemy’s scared shiftless computer operators
our enemies underfunded painters and struggling pianists
our enemy’s cultured commentators with no premieres
our enemies pregnant peasant’s dioxin laden fetus
our enemy’s homeless deranged angelic beggars
kissing your high school graduation ring
in gratitude you sent their miserable landlords
to the heavens in pieces
lets drop banjos and clarinets
cause a bellydance epidemic
faster than medicine
cheaper than bombs

CUE CARDS (for laughing at the bomb)
You can’t go anywhere
without the bleeding bomb these days
went to walk the dog last night
found the leash, rhinestones glittering
around the neck of the slobbering bomb
you think a dog humping your leg
is annoying imagine the bomb
climbing into your lap

standing by the door
on the way to school
little lunchbucket in hand
the bomb puckered its silvery lips
waiting for its goodbye kiss
its be careful hug

the officer of tomorrow
has radial tires on his bomb
combs his bombs his curly bombs
in the rearview mirror

the air force pipes
Beethoven’s bombs
over the beaches
and boardrooms

is that you in the men’s room
shining the shoes of the bomb
for four bits, a pot of java
steaming on the hotplate

thank goodness yesterday
i just caught the bomb
emptying the medicine cabinet

bought a megaton of sausage
for the bar b q
and a big can of Boston Baked Bombs

sliced a few dozen mushroom clouds
preparing the living end of omelettes
this breakfast
had a splitting headache
so I called the bomb
it was busy

read the Bomb Street Journal
see if your investments are taking a dive
good little bombs don’t pick their nose
don’t massage your bomb in public
you know why the bomb isn’t funny
it takes 35 square miles of corn
and melts you like butter

Billy Little