How to Keep It All at Bay
-with a line from David Archuleta's newest single
Black jelly beans. But not enough to make you sick. Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Belgian Chocolate Bar with almonds, 2-3 squares after lunch, as needed. On the days that you can walk, walk through the woods on the other side of the lake. Bring the dog. Invite one red-tailed hawk and a swan. Follow the melody until it ends or starts up again. Interview a skunk and a stinkbug. Compare and contrast. Soak your plants in well-regarded Brahms. Empty the attic. Bequeath your dangerous rocking horse to a stranger. Encourage the frenzied exuberance of the blooming forsythia—the world could always stand a little more yellow. Donate all your books to the used bookstore in town. Do not disclose the location of your hidden stash of Diet Coke. Never trust the daffodils. Buy back your old books, shyly, one by one. Keep a standing audience with birds. Leave just as the last magnolia petal strikes against the softening earth. I should tell you it’s impossible. You can’t keep it all at bay. Halle! Lujah! What’s it doing for ya? Prepare to be pummeled.
Susan Barry-Schulz is a first generation Estonian-American who grew up just outside of Buffalo, NY. Her poetry has appeared in HAD, Okay Donkey, The Westchester Review, and in many other print and online journals and anthologies. Her work has been nominated for Best of Net and Pushcart Prizes.
