by Michele F. Cooper
Mahogany and velvet,
two dozen sedations
for Sunday brunch,
personal comments like burrs
on the dark wool,
spring mix
with a navy napkin,
china waiting
for the quiche and soup,
chairman entering
during dessert,
taking the podium,
smiling the bad news,
the red line up,
stocks in mothballs,
pink slips in the office,
he knows the numbers
will improve, and then
his plan for the short term,
plan for the long haul,
tightening of belts,
discipline and loyalty,
salaries only in half
till the third quarter,
having no doubts,
they will rise again,
and thank you all.
Michele F. Cooper is the first-place winner in Poetry Canada's Rhymed Poetry Competition and the TallGrass Poetry Competition, second-place winner in the Galway Kinnell Poetry Competition, author of two books and numerous published poems, founding editor of the Newport Review and Crone's Nest literary magazines, and of a chapbook series, Premier Poets. She recently won honorable mentions in the Emily Dickinson and New Millennium Poetry Competitions. Her book Posting the Watch has just been published by Turning Point, the narrative poetry imprint at WordTech. She is listed in Who's Who in America, Contemporary Authors, and the Directory of American Poets and Fiction Writers, among others. She recently moved from the edge of a small horse farm (not hers) to Providence, RI, and now to the Cleveland area, where she writes and works as a book editor.
