This is a test, This is only a test
1) The woman knocks on your door
loudly, persistently
As you open the door,
she launches into her diatribe
She tells you and your wife
that you spent all of last night
drinking and fucking,
fucking and drinking
she has an empty whiskey bottle
Yukon Jack, which you used to-
You stare at her
speech gone
you have sober for the last thirty years
last night
you were at a meeting
then home
then home
She looks and laughs
“This is a test
This is only a test”
2) You get the call
It’s male and a deep base
he has a threat
we have photos of you
committing fatal violence
in Charlotte
North Carolina,
a place you never remember being
in this life or any past one
He demands $10,000
in unmarked $20 bills
You refuse
You hang up
Next day
the photos arrive
they are grainy
could be anyone doing anything
anyone doing anything
the day after the next
the letter arrives
in block newsprint
like a hostage payment request
“This is a test
This is only a test”
3) The Officers stand at your door
they identify themselves as Police always do
You are requested to accompany them
“This is not routine”
Your wife starts to put on her coat
but is told
this is not allowed
“Procedure, Mum”
In the car
you ask them
What is going on
leaving out the expletive
At first
it’s like you never spoke
Then the one on the right
Only the one on the right
has his face slowly turn around
His face becomes …
then it changes…
to your first lover
the one who was a non child
even though you were
This is a test
This is the sanity test
This is a pass/fail test
You did not-
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About bobsmall1
Bob Small has read at Bacchanal, Barnes and Noble, Borders,
The Booksource (Swarthmore), The Clark Park Festivals,Community College of Philadelphia
Highwire Gallery, The Mad Poets Annual Food Fest Reading,
The Middle East Restaurant, Nexus GalleryThe Painted Bride Arts Center,
The Philadelphia Ethical Society, Robin's Bookstore
The University of Pennsylvania and also in New York City,
Trenton, NJ, Washington, DC, and in many Delaware Valley Venues.
He is the author of numerous chapbooks, including
El Otro Lado (with Maralyn Lois Polak), On watching America Die,
Small Steps and Toes (with Lamont B. Steptoe), and The Unapoet.
This is his first Reading in over a year.
Bob Small was Founder and President of the
two decades old Poets and Prophets,
which presented Poetry Readings
in both Delaware County and Philadelphia.
Bob was the Chair of The Delaware County Green Party and was the
First Green Party Candidate in Delaware County (2005).
He was also a Green Party National Delegate, among other duties.
He is the Founder and Facilitator of
The Pennsylvania Ballot Access Coalition (PaBac),
which is a Coalition of both Independents and Third Parties.,
seeking to legislatively improve Pennsylvania's Ballot Access Laws. (Facebook)
Bob is also a founding member and
Facilitator of Democracy Unplugged, and Delco Debates,
which has presented Independent and Third Party Forums in Delaware County since 2004. Facebook)
He was formerly involved with Cinema Resistance, and Delco Pledge of Resistance.
Bob currently lives in Swarthmore with his wife
and their menagerie of animals.
He is currently focused on writing a Novel and organizing his Poetry, which he posts on his Blog (Bob Small1). He is retired from most of the above activities, except Delco Debates and Poets and Prophets, which he may return to.
robertthesmall 