Bart Galle is a medical educator and artist who has
self-published a (dam) fine art book of original paintings and poems,
Continuing Presence (2004).
He has poetry forthcoming in White Pelican Review. He and his wife and
family live in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
A Modest Proposal
Painted on the back of a pickup truck:
Will Haul for Peace and Justice.
A political statement, of course,
not a real offer. To a cynic, a way
to avoid work. But things fall
from a higher sphere all the time;
just listen to the loons.
An archangel stands by a driveway
piled with junk, wondering
what happened to the truck he ordered.
Only last week, the cleaning crew
(Will Clean to End Poverty) left dust
in all the corners. What would happen
if The Heavenly Book of Yellow Pages
showed up on our doorsteps? Under
house repairs, Will Paint to End
Murder and Rape; under automotive,
AAA Garage: Carburetor Repair
for Joy and Serenity. Long-term credit
would become the norm, no payments
for ten years. Then bankruptcies
and a return to a cash economy.
So, here is my offer:
Will sit with you on a log in the woods,
watching the clouds go by,
doing nothing, asking nothing.
