corporate new year brought to you by fireworks

the afternoon smoke in a warm double papasan
sheer white curtains protect from prying
even though voices were raised  before she left

it's a hard thing, this idea of choice, to honor
 the wishes of the bearer.the woman who will
or not.  plenty of love, she said. is that what it is?

one can hope. she doesn't know what a curse  that is,
 she wants the sting of the evening. fiddle  full of ants.
.the poem in the promise.magic.

strains of a sweet brazilian song drift from across
the backyard.  couple trailers over a pig's roasting
the smell marches down the street singing mariachis

she left to pick up the new babysitter. her eight year old
daughter is going to surprise someone. perhaps herself
.firecrackers begin , popping penecnes.

 there is a party on the other side of the fence bordering
the concrete slab where you can skate or ride bikes. they  play
salsa and rhumba., tango up to the minute. count down

in espanol .when midnight comes the sky explodes
a war zone, a mass shooting rings in the night, comes
from all directions. over head the spinning lights shower

and fade. in the distance huge algael blooms fire briefly
in oak tree branches, bearing mythical fruits. will ok then
will makes it so. rationality's only a rope to hang yourself with.

if jones can win alabama then maybe hope is possible

but my gods want me to lose it.

so they met moons ago then reconnected.
they've been taking it slow, except in bed.
he's got six kids. he tells her pays child support.
i have no reason to disbelieve her
but another kid in mix is asking a lot of the universe.

she likes the way his parents are still together
and don't fight, unlike all her role models.
he's got a job and a motorcycle just over a year
after being on the streets. she's finally tired of begin poor
and got a job. got a job and doing well.

how would a new infant mix this up?
we can think of the ways. but how would it
confirm the progress they've made, individually
collectively and as a couple.

it sure will push things to a new role for everyone.
new living situation, new problems, new discoveries.
i dunno. i couldn't do it. but since she's had both
abortion and child, she understands which is more difficult
for her. security is not that important to her, i guess.
life is. i'd be scared to death, but i guess if she can even
contemplate this, she's so much braver than i. so
fuck you gods, i will hope for her. i can't lose that
no matter how many times i'm tested.