Ursus americanus ~ Saturday, February 14, 2026

In America, where I live and thrive
not as an American, do I dare

American, ha ha ha, a writer
must, as need be, in order to survive
engage with Ursus americanus
remember it is Latin for black bear
if I were not a lover, a fighter
causes catastrophic damage, this cage
a prison, this world full of arrogance

welcome to the Inferno of Dante
how no one no longer knows wrongdoing
each day, my pace slows down to andante
realize the kettle, a song brewing
each morning, as sparrows, all in a rage

I live in ambiguity, no fear

lingers from childhood, the black bear knocks twice
in the morning, we run on the sidewalk
victims of prejudice, we drink a beer
each day before we ride the train, Red Line

ask me not what goes on, what makes the mice
needlessly beg, two hands, two feet, they talk
drugged out for years, atrophy, their brains gone

tell me the black bear is not death, a fine
hovers over my head, karma, I jest
remember, I am a poet, I lie
in bed and realize, this is a test
virtue and vice, heaven or hell, I buy
everyone a drink, buy the dog a bone

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