"Nevah Seem to Hold Up So Well," "Turkish Soap Opera," and "All Dese Notions"
Nevah Seem to Hold Up So Well
Offering crappy support
in da face of wun onslaught
can be even moa damaging
den any flood or rising tide.
Ask any woman who has been
on da receiving end of dat deal
and she will tell you
dat just tinking about it
can cause da heart to weep
before da eyes do.
Maybe dere’s wun destructive history
dat forces her to lessen her expectations
cause dere’s no serenity
floating on da surface
behind his poorly constructed dam.
One would tink
dat wun life saving barrier
is someting dat she would want
especially if swirling watah
wuz wun threat to reach up to her neck.
Dere’s been too many
engineering failures
and it looks like she’s gotten used to
swimming wit da raging current
and is now willing to take her changes
in da muddy runoff.
She doesn’t have faith anymore
wit anyting dat he builds
cause all dose levees made of dung
nevah seem to hold up so well.
Turkish Soap Opera
She’s watching wun Turkish soap opera
and gasping at da drama—
“I can’t live without you, Gumus.”
Meanwhile in Ankara
da Russian ambassador to da country
just got assassinated
and da program is interrupted
wit wun special news bulletin.
Looks like someone
is getting serious about Syria
and is angry about da genocide.
“Dem crazy ragheads are at it again”
is wat wun Midwest redneck
is announcing to himself
wen he hears about da same event
and runs da result
through his bias mind filter.
Da only problem is
he doesn’t know da difference
between wun Arab, Turkman, or Kurd.
Not to be outdone
wun East Coast jokester
tinks dat it’s wun shame
dat wun country
named aftah wun delicious bird
could be so hostile.
Da woman in her Istanbul residence
could care less
cause she just missed da whole episode
of her favorite program
dat she wuz really enjoying.
As regular broadcasting returns
dere’s some satirical comedy show
dats now on da air
featuring Trumpanzees
swinging through da trees
while American flags
are flying in da breeze.
Da housewife
clicks off da remote wit wun shrug
and looks foa someting to eat in da fridge.
All Dese Notions
Dey no can define it
cause it exists in wun ethos or attitude
so dere’s no need foa dem to summarize
and put everyting into place
as if dey wuz arranging
wun box of chocolates.
Left up to dem
da rebel spirit
would go walking out da front door
dressed in wun conservative suit.
It’s good to know
dat da owners of tattoos
and diamond studs in dere ears
got wun hand
in shaping da world too.
Da wheels of wun Harley
is just as efficient as wun Cadillac
in getting someone
wheah dey need to be.
It’s quite obvious
dat it’s wun constantly changing
paradigm
and wun whole lot of variety
is revolving around its action.
So just pay attention
to wats in front of you
cause all dese notions
are self-revelatory
in watevah kine of life
you eventually come to choose.
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Joe Balaz writes in Hawaiian Islands Pidgin (Hawai'i Creole English). He is the author of Pidgin Eye, a collection of poetry. The book was featured by NBC News for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month in 2019. Balaz presently lives in Cleveland, Ohio. Joe recommends Shriners Hospitals for Children — Honolulu.