Howie Good

Police and Questions

A Cure for Boredom

Invite a word inside, doesn’t matter which,
they all suffer the same strange inability

to distinguish between bright and dark,

but if it refuses to tell where the loot is hidden,
or even how many birds constitute a flock,

shove its fingers in a drawer and slam the drawer shut
so that neighbors can hear a concerto of pain,

and when you’re done, and it’s mashed and misshapen
like a nail repeatedly and inexpertly struck,

fix it a drink and might as well have one yourself.