Two Sunday Poems

Check Out

By Neal Zagarella

Chet Baker falls

Like soft drops of warm rain

Unexpectedly from

The up above in the Stop and Shop

There once was a nervous girl

That served coffee for a living

And to keep from dying

Listened to sad songs

On my back porch

Last night a tide was summoned

By the call of an old Tom Petty lyric

Or the way my wife sang it

Though I didn’t know her

Or even much of me

When I first strummed 

The imaginary guitar of my feelings

If I didn’t have a shopping list

I’d never remember 

What I came in here for

Even so

I’ll have to lean here a moment

And take a few deep breaths

Before I check out

Shiver 

By Kerry Zagarella 

The rails are shaking

Not so distant train on the way

We shiver 

Like the vibrations

Of what is to come

Not knowing how to stop it

The lever detached 

Too late to switch tracks

The locomotive set on full steam ahead 

expanding spotlight 

Provides no insight

Illuminating only 

The wretched ease of hatred

And the convulsing bodies 

tied to the track