Pictures

For nine years in a block of flats
I hung a few pictures on my walls,
except for the cinder block wall.

In my new home the maintenance
man worked his way through my
lined up pictures fitting them all
neatly round bedroom and living
room walls within an hour.
Not gallery style but spread
out enough to enjoy.

As I talked with a friend
on the phone – she lived nearby –
the ground beneath us shook –
Earthquake ! she gasped. We were
glad when it stopped. Bad things
happen here when the ground
shakes on and on and on and on.

I straightened my smaller pictures
went about my daily life. Was
surprised when the smaller ones
went crooked again. though we
had no further earthquakes.
those pictures had stayed straight
in my old flat – why not now ?

A moving picture caught my eye
as a large truck rumbled past out
on our street – used as a bypass
for a nearby busy main street.

I am still straightening
my smaller pictures.