Tanks on Main Street

Tanks on Main Street
by Jerry Pat Bolton


those who still had testicles
and some who searched
and found theirs
massed together
past squabbles forgotten
for the moment

liberal guy
right wing not shy

past sins of the other
forgiven for the greater good
a bigger threat lunges
menacing both
America is all but lost
diehard Islamist the killer

what did we do
I mean . . . who knew

creeping crud across our land
women haters one and all
at least those who do not wear veils
and those praying not to Allah
found a back door into America
it was called apathy

what can be done
they took our guns

it happened slowly
stealthily across the land
a smile
a nod
we’re not like the terrorists, they said
smiling benign smiles

they took us in
with lies and grins

while the ACLU was busy
kicking Christians in the teeth
no school prayer
no this and no that
but they built their mosque
they live under sharia

they came with hate
to sit and wait

we watched and nodded
smiled, said naught
as they infiltrated our schools
where Christ was not allowed
we were told to look the other way
they are peaceful, don’t you know

we gave to them
their every whim

and now they are standing by
ready to strike
no longer smiling
they’re beating their chests
with centuries’ old élan
sneering at The Great Satan

for their deceit
tanks on Main Street

©January 5, 2008 / Jerry Pat Bolton

LCN-TV BOOK INTERVIEW

Commitment

By now, on this second day of 2008, millions of "New Year's Resolution" has already been discarded for lack of commitment. Commitment. That is the word for today. What is so scary about that word that a lot of people run from it at the first chance given? Is it fear of losing a part of yourself that causes us break so many of these ill-conceived promises.

I believe the fear of commitment can be traced back to an earlier time in almost, if not all, people. The ones who raise children have a tremendous task as they nurture young skulls full of mush down the road of acceptable behavior and morality. Sometimes there is a tendency to become overzealous in the guidance of these children. When that happens the child is likely to grow up with a perverted sense of self. When you do not feel good about yourself you tend to abuse yourself mentally and to cover up your abuse you begin to take out your frustration on other around you. It is a vicious circle of self incrimination and the inability to "connect" with others, therefore, although you can have superficial relations you tend to not be one who can commit because of your fear of doing wrong. That brings us back to the way you were raised. A constant, negative bombardment from the ones who are supposed to instill worth tend to make you think of yourself as not worthy, therefore you stop well short of commitment in most situation, whether it is life in general or commitment to another person, like for instance your marriage vows.

Those who have this fear of commitment tend to leave insincere and lonely lives.

My Novels:

Write To Murder . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/956621

Margaret and David: A Love Story . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1072842

My Mother's Revenge . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1132742

Tending Life's Garden

Not beating up on myself, just telling some truths.

My life's garden began when I was young,
learning by touch and by smell which to stroke,
and whether I should eat or I should poke,
I found what smelled good could also be dung.

The garden of my life reached puberty,
thunder, lightening and rain all came to call,
wanting to be a man, feeling so small,
snipped the umbilical cord to be free.

Glorious days of wine, women and song,
like a downpour of voluptuous flesh,
giving my garden substance to refresh,
flowers to be plucked as I danced along.

There were times when drought came to my garden,
wondered if it would be the death of me,
where are my ripe flowers, God, I did plea,
tried to restore but the ground had hardened.

Still, the garden grew, fresh flowers were born,
progressed and entered into adult years,
my garden grew into celestial spheres,
females caused me joy, then caused me to mourn.

The landscape of my garden was worn thin,
nurturing it became awkward, nothing grew,
I found you must love life, give it it's due,
as I looked back, I cringed where I had been.

My plot of life, my garden, as it were,
managed to feed itself without my aid,
helped me to the fall of my life's parade,
although a huge part of it was a blur.

The bitter weeds I've sown along the way,
causes remorse, yes I would change some parts,
mainly the left atrium of my heart,
give it more feeling and less disarray.

These are the days of my full winter's chill,
my plot of life has made its mark for good,
I've given it much, I did what I could,
I've had valleys and peaks and oh, some thrills.

Time has a way of rinsing out the bad,
we feed off ourselves, cannibalistic,
a merry-go-round down to the last click,
I just wish I had been a stay-home dad.

©June 26, 2006 / Jerry Pat Bolton

My Christmas Present

Today a box came in the mail,
It was addressed to me, not Dale.
What could be in this little box?
I shook it, I did not hear rocks.

Light as a feather it felt to me,
It was sealed so tight I could not see.
I tore into that box, I did.
Was it just air there? Oh forbid!

Inside the box another one!
My, oh my, this is so much fun.
I read To Grandpa, From Jimmy
My heart danced and then it shimmied.

My hands trembled opening it,
With tears in my eyes I admit.
It was a golden Christmas ball,
The best present I can recall.

Engraved on it, Number 1 Grandpa
I feel so good, I am in awe.
Jimmy is my groovy grandson.
Jimmy is my only grandson.

UPDATE . . . CHRISTMAS DAY

Today my daughter dialed my phone,
I've not spoke to her in so long.
We talked today and I am proud,
I love her so much, I say out loud.

©December 24, 2007 / Jerry Pat Bolton

It's Like I Said

Now that I have finished the first draft of Misdemeanors & Felonies: A Memoir I am struggling to find a real reason to keep this site viable. I suppose I could continue to relate daily my pprogress, or lack of progress, concerning the story, but I'm beginning to feel a little worn out with all the "talking" about it. I am posting what I have written here on my Myspace site and a few people read and comment on it, but any more "talk" about the project is becoming a little weirsome.

Saying that, I have to relate that the rewrite is progressing quite well. Oh, it is hard, no doubt about it, harder actually than I thought it would be, but I'm getting through it. I had so many notes I'd taken over the decades which I wanted to bring out in the telling of the story, and I did bring out the most important ones, but there are incidential things which also need to be included, and that is what the rewrite is all about. Also, toward the end of the first draft I tended to "rush" things, sometimes covering a great many years and happenings in one chapter. I need to fis at least some of that. Which means the book will be bigger than it already is, and it is already almost four hundred pages. THAT means I have to go back through it . . . This morning . . . And change the font from Palatino to Time Roman. In so doing I will pick up quite a few pages, so that is my agenda today, pluse trying to rewrite Chapter 16 and maybe more, well see.

Until the next time . . .

My Novels:

Write To Murder . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/956621

Margaret and David: A Love Story . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1072842

My Mother's Revenge . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1132742

Rebirth

Yes, indeed, a brand new baby is born. This baby's name? The rewrite or second draft of Misdemeanors & Felonies. Whatever name you want to give it, it is time to begin to put the outline (which is what the first draft amounted to) on the table and begin to tinker, slash, burn, add, completely rewrite whole scenes, if not whole chapters, in an attempt to turn what I have already written into something special. This "tinkering" will begin in the very beginning, because before Chapter 1, I will have a Forward or Prelude, whatever in order to put the rest of the book in perspective. Some writers scoff at the notion of a Forward, saying just tell the story, you do not need a Preamble to it telling the readers what to expect. Horsefeathers. I will begin with a Forward. I took many, many notes during a thirty, maybe forty-year span about my life in anticipation of writing a novel based on it. I have used some, quote a lot actually, of the notes, but there are still many II need to incorporate, and I shall.

I also know that I have left out important part of my life in a mad rush to get to the end of the book and not have it go too many pages. That was a mistake and I shall rectify that omission also. I so want this book for the people I have already mentioned that I became frenzied in my attempt to "get it done." I keep saying that I am writing this for my children, but am I really? Yes, I am really, although there is a great desire to get it written for my own sake, I can't lie about that. I have said that the book was meant to be written, and I have thought about it for many, many years, but not exactly in the form I am finally doing it. The writing of Misdemeanors & Felonies: A Memoir will, of course, be for me also. In fantasying thoughts (which I am never prone to do) I envision, as I write it I can break away from the real and interject what should have happened and make everything all right. That would be nice. It can;t be, however, what is done is done unfortunately, and unless I could locate the old Devil and offer my soul to be able to change the course of my life, nothing can be done about what has happened.

I'm not sure if I will be posting each day as I have before, but I imagine I will, whether or not I will post on Myspace page is another thing. I doubt it . . .

Here we go . . .

My Novels:

Write To Murder . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/956621

Margaret and David: A Love Story . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1072842

My Mother's Revenge . . . http://www.lulu.com/content/1132742