an old writer and his words

  • A FOOL’S BUSINESS

    At the end of a long day spenton the business end of poetry, andyes there is a business end but do notconfuse that with money for thathas nothing at all to do with poetry,I stare at the page knowing the wordsare going to be stubborn this day,will refuse to exit the pen, hidingin the darkness…

    Lou Faber

  • WRITING

    I have a Chinese friendwho says I should write poemsabout pomegranates and chrysanthemums.A Japanese business acquaintance sayspoems should be populated by sakura and Lotus.I tend to think of their advicein the deadest days of winterwhen snow presses against the houseas if seeking its faint warmth.As I thinly sliced the tender shootsof bamboo and dampen the…

    Lou Faber

  • SHE

    She is both mother hen and Mother Superior. She is always loving, but she is a harsh taskmaster who wants things done on her schedule and brooks no dissent or excuses. But she reads us well, knows when we require affection, when we need her present or absent. We do not know quite how she…

    Lou Faber

  • WHY NOT AN ELEVENTH?

    The internet, he said, was God’s gift to Satan, but Satan returned it within the warranty period since it didn’t bring him nearly as much business as he had hoped. That, and the broadband in Hell was iffy most of the time, something about the heat, like broadband in Florida in the summer, only worse.…

    Lou Faber

  • RECYCLED NEWS

    The newspapers pile up,their headlines screamout, sections of business newsor the arts, and a halfcompleted crossword., They sit patiently, knowingmuch has happened that weought to know, but wehave grown tired of deathand so each week we place them in the binwhere they are takento the dump wherethe lessons of the newsgo to die forgotten.

    Lou Faber

  • FROM THE ASHES

    I would like to go backto the days when,after a fire reduceda commericial buildingto charred rubble,the onlookers andthe gawkers wonderedif it was an angrycustomer or employee,or sloppiness orpoor maintenance. Now, we watchas the fire marshalscomb through the ashesand the rubble, lookingnot only for the sourceof the flames but alsothe accelerant, alwayswondering as we dojust how…

    Lou Faber

  • COGITO

    She said, “I truly think that a large part of your problem is that you spend too much time thinking about what other people think of you.” He wasn’t inclined to agree, but she did think that so he had to give it consideration. “I don’t think so,” he replied, “but if you think so,…

    Lou Faber