Lies Upon Lips

Erika Lutzner

Fifty dead in Iraq the headlines say
A fire in the Bronx; mother and son,
asphyxiated, one firefighter fell through,
six stories, shattered twenty-two vertebrae

She breathes with a machine

Children replace thought with Xboxes and TV
would rather eat takeouts empty calories
freezer burned pizza and brownies out of a box
doesn’t much matter, as mothers can’t cook
America needs more sugar in her diet

This country is run by a man who sent men and women
to war over oil and supposed nuclear threat

America needs more sugar in her diet
my husband died that day in 2001
along with the others
The President says; “The Middle East is responsible.”

Headline screams:
Father locks daughter and her
children in secret love dungeon
by the time they find him, he’s shot
off his head, no trace of reason left
save a note saying:

I couldn’t help myself
I love you all—

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