The Pond
The pond is filled with quarters, though they are in the bellies of fish, and the alligators have both of them in their bellies, and there are dimes and pennies that no one wants. The water is deep. There are wishes and hopes attached to those coins. They never come true when you do not believe the wish will come true. I fish for quarters when I am fed up with life. I hope for wealth to buy me alligator snake boots; the ones who inhabit this pond. The ones that eat up our hope. Ice Box Kids My kids are in the ice box. It was too hot outside for them. Take my word for it. If you want some ice cream, you can check. They will be better off there. All they do is sleep anyway. I can put them on defrost in the microwave a little later. They need to stretch their legs. They can’t pretend to be ice cubes all day. I am sure there is a community waiting for them. These kids get in all sorts of trouble when they play out in the sun. They need a little cooling off in the ice box for their own good. You can take them if you want them. I need space for the twins I am having. I can tell they will need cooling off. They are kicking up a storm inside me. Answering Questions Drink a little water. Live in the forest. There are things I need. A house with rooms. A house with walls. I need everything. The eye needs glasses. I need everything. I can say this place needs a bomb. Drink a little water. These eyes need glasses. The house needs windows and beds and chairs. I need bread and butter. Who is going to help me? Feed on Life Feed on life as long as you can before death feeds on you. Those hungry worms await with the appetite of vultures. Life has its terms and it expires. It does not care less if you are weak or if you are strong. It will come. It will go. Hyenas are out there to feed on you as you are down. Feed on life while you have the strength. It is all I can say. I Used To Know Everything I put people to rest in my sleep. I send them to the dark side of the moon. I have a powerful mind brain. I burn paper and with its ashes I make gold. I used to know everything. I don’t know why I am best at forgetting. I sit in this sidewalk all alone. I watch the firemen put out fires all day. I am in need of cigarettes. I smoke them to relax myself and to fight cancer mano a mano. It gets awfully cloudy where I live. Bio: Luis lives in California and works in the mental health field in Los Angeles. His poetry has appeared in Fevers of the Mind, Kendra Steiner Editions, Mad Swirl, Unlikely Stories, and Venus in Scorpio Poetry Ezine.
all drawings by Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozabal
Fevers of the Mind 