Two Men

The stiff man scrubs his hands,
finds time to vote, respects money,
supports causes, hates guitar music,
suspects new neighbors, goes to church,
points out immorality in movies, tv,
books, schools, fears radicals, advises
children to work hard, save money,
marry a nice girl (boy), buy a home,
pay bills promptly, don’t be late at night.

The supple man neglects dirty hands,
scoffs at voting, piles up debts,
sneers at posters, enjoys rock music,
skimps his work, swears at taxes,
enjoys women, gives money to radicals,
feels burdened by property, stretches
vacations, confides in children, aches
for their sorrows, prowls at night.

These two men share my table, bed,
office, home and sign their letters
with my name.

    Original Citation
    Poetry Now (Jan. 1976) 24.
    Word Count
    118
    Original Publication
    Date Published
    1976
    Complete Poems
    311
    Theme(s)
    First Line
    The stiff man scrubs his hands,
    Poetic Form
    open
    Twitter Quote
    The supple man neglects dirty hands, / scoffs at voting, piles up debts,