Mary Krane Derr

Mary K. can be reached at marykderr@aol.com. She writes: I like to write

poetry, and I've had work in a variety of magazines including

Pudding, Lilliput Review, and (as of next month) Switched-on Gutenberg.

POSTCARD BETWEEN CHICAGO AND DULUTH

Dear Jon,

I woke up on the bus.

I was the only one

who didn't look Norwegian.

TWO OF A KIND

Dad folds himself down

to meditate

on the cushion.

Child plops down on it

to watch cartoons.

THE TROUBLE WITH AMERICA IS

(as the spellcheck divined)

that the word **bodhisattva**

is not in the dictionary.

SHOPPING MALL FLYER

Christian Ladies

"Weight Loss" Program!!!

Take off those pounds

FOR HIM!!!

As the Bible commands:

"He must increase

while I must decrease"

WHAT A JOKE

Do you know the one

about the feminist guy

who decreed no girlfriend of his

would ever be a sellout to the patriarchy?

When he caught her

shaving her legs,

he ordered her to stop.

BUT NO

The yoga teacher says,

"Assume again

Tadasana,

the beautiful

mountain

posture."

And I had assumed I am

a loose pile of bricks,

yank one out and they

all come tumbling down to shards.

SAN FRANCISCO IS A TOWN WHERE

you’re sitting on a bench and a man

sits down next to you

and smiles and unbuckles

his briefcase and pulls out

his blocks of Burmese typescript to show you.

Mary K. Derr