Men, squatting on their haunches,
talk around the fire
about politics, jobs, blow
jobs, fat cats, pet poodles, rain
v. rhubarb & such
as they sip the bitter day-
old coffee from tin
mugs.  The men turn to the fire,

in deference to the supposed
wisdom of its age,
for advice.  It says nothing
worth remembering,
but they listen anyway,
knowing it too is dying.

Matt Morris has appeared in various magazines and anthologies. He’s received multiple nominations for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net. His first book, Nearing Narcoma, won the Main Street Rag Poetry Book Award. Knut House Press published his latest collection, Walking in Chicago with a Suitcase in My Hand.