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Monday, November 29, 2010

ONCE GOLDEN





















Poor little phone book
lying unclaimed in the road
tossed from a moving truck
in the general direction of that mailbox
someone was supposed to pick you up
but they said it's just more clutter
and closed the shutter

You were assembled with care
and you had a PURPOSE
in the beginning...
didn't we all

Now
what's left to behold
but the remnants of a wasted life
a tree
needlessly sacrificed
Your pages
once golden
now covered with dust
prematurely yellowed
with age
subjected to the elements
and whipping in the wind
those of us with similar tire tracks
across our backs
can identify

Lying spread-eagled
like a fallen woman
displaying
(ironically)
the section
for escort services
most of us
wanton as we may be
would not prefer to advertise
in such a blatant manner

And I guess it's one thing
to be yellow
from the outset
(or should that be offset?)
but the insult to injury
must surely be
that my dog
has peed on you
numerous times

All of us created with
the best of intentions
and sometimes
the worst of fates

33 comments:

  1. Nice allegory, Timoteo!

    I'm reminded of a thing I wrote awhile back about being an old piece of paper. (Which was excellent of course, so yours is great by proxy)

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  2. Wonderful metaphor. Love the tire tracks - similar or identical for all of us yet. I literally laughed outloud at the dog peeing numerous time. I also remember your penultimate poem as a commentary on the wretchedness of life (or at least some of it's aspects). Instead of wanting to give you a hug, I just want to commiserate with you or maybe get drunk or go on an ice cream and home made brownies binge; well maybe just 2 out of the 3.

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  3. ERIC,
    We'll pat ourselves on the back and ignore those tire tracks.

    ARLENE,
    Booze, ice cream, brownies...it's all good! But I'm not really wallowing in wretchedness these days...I often write more as the observer, and lately, I guess, I've been observing wretched things!

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  4. Great metaphor here, I feel like this quite often, although I don't think I have as many numbers on my pages!!

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  5. I wonder if the dog snickered when he pissed on the book... Seriously, I enjoy the ironic twists of your lines. Interesting and telling intentions display caught open to a "companion page."

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  6. Oh my goodness, I so love this! The similar tire tracks on our backs, the being able to identify, the worst of fates, the being peed on. You took a humble object and made us relate to it, feel sorry for it and feel our kinship. Great writing! Wonderful poem, appreciated by the similarly downtrodden and worn-at-the-edges :)

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  7. Irony, metaphor, and an admirable sense of relatability to the work that certainly makes it all the more potent. Bloody world, bloody dog - just taking a leak on everything. Strong, yet entertaining work - a great one for the One Shot.

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  8. Really enjoyable - well done. Commentary on our times, once necessary now put out in the road, job outsourced to the cheapest labor and the robots rule. Thanks, Gay

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  9. I'm feeling a bit in need of recycling now. Those lines about the wanton display and the escort service--quite nicely done. A very entertaining read full of humor and skill.

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  10. I love the way you go between life truths and mundane dogs peeing. Great read!

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  11. From tree to gutter...what a waste. Excellent One Shot.

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  12. hoho...thanks for teh chuckle...the dog peeing on you is quite the fate...but there is a ring of truth in your closing lines...

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  13. can totally see this...so many phone books, and they keep coming...what a waste...but it made the dog happy...bkm

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  14. i became addicted to your interesting poems Tim! every time you astonish my mind with another amazing approach to the tiny details we might pass by in our lives, love the sarcastic humor,the reality and the great imagery of your verse..FANTASTIC ONE SHOT my friend..:)
    yeah,happy for the dog after all ha! ;)

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  15. So true. I loved the metaphor of the phone book and life. You have the best imagination.

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  16. I'm in awe again...you are an amazing writer.

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  17. That closing stanza did it for me.

    Great poem....thoughtful.

    Lady Nyo

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  18. Tis sad when what we expect turns out totally different from reality

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  19. Awesome allegory!!!

    I love it :)

    cheers from Uruguay

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  20. I love this. Great one shot. Love and Light, Sender

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  21. tossed, supposed, closed.... and now its time to repose

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  22. Y'all are FANTASTIC, and that means: RepressedSoul, Dustus, Sherry, Cianphelan, Gay, Hedgewitch, Teresa, KB, Brian, BKM, Desert Rose, River, Lorraine, Lady Nyo, Budh.aaah, Gabriela,Senderupwords, and DeLi !

    KB,
    Yes, I got tired of seeing things land in the gutter...that's why I gave up bowling!

    DESERT ROSE,
    You are so sweet to me! When I think about it now, perhaps the book did fulfill a purpose--humble though it may be--if it provided a little more fun for my dog!

    LORRAINE,
    Thanks (I'm still coming over there!)

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  23. what a metaphor..and did you write the poem while your doog still peed...?

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  24. A thoughtful one you put up here..very reflective.

    Cheers!

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  25. CLAUDIA,
    The first time she peed on it was when the ideas began to flow!

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  26. Objective to change, this relic that I am becoming... still honors those things of the past. _m

    A Real:
    Dictionary Phone Book
    Book Personal Letter
    Thesaures Lead Pencil
    Atlas News Paper

    Wow... what a dinosaur I am!

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  27. Oh, the poor phone book! Enough have commented on the allegory to life, so I shan't go there.
    Ack, who wants to get peed on! Be the pee'er(?no where near a word I am afraid). Happy One shot Tim to another great post

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  28. Interesting piece, though I have thought of what books could tell of their readers, have never considered this type of a perspective. You've done well with it tho, had to LOL several times.

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  29. I hope such dread and misery doesn't befall upon anybody/anything! Gee.. Tim, you have so masterfully brought out the pain faced by this discarded little phonebook.. I am sure even the book would appreciate this concern.. I really liked the part where you mention the trees going wasted over a discarded book... nicely done bit, that one!
    Come to think of it, your poem reminds me of a poem I had written ages ago - Rantings of a disgruntled shopping cart..

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  30. Hi Timoteo

    You have a very interesting style of writing as well as seeing the world around you and that makes your verses and thoughts unique.. and I like it every time .. fresh out look of common things...
    Thanks for sharing...

    ॐ नमः शिवाय
    Om Namah Shivaya
    Twitter: @VerseEveryDay
    Blog: http://shadowdancingwithmind.blogspot.com

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  31. love the parallel between the phone book and a human creation! this was terrific

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  32. Emmanuel, Doug,(take heart, dinosaurs will rule the world again someday!)Kkrige, (we'd all like to be the pee'er rather than the pee-ee!)Reflections, Kavisions, (I'd like to read that one) Shashi, Caty...thanks for stopping by and for your beautiful, insightful comments!

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  33. the way my life is going at the mo...i bet your dog pawed through the pages, found my entry and then peed on it....a great metaphor - yep i know its been said but it was...cheers pete

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