Damian Balassone: Five Poems

Taylor Swift

When Taylor

struts her stuff

at the Radisson,

Germaine Greer

dances with

Sir Les Patterson.

The Mirror

To google

yourself

is the gravest of errors,

your screen is

replaced

by the mirror of terrors.

The Wooer

for Donald Trump

To alleviate his sense of self-loathing

a conniving werewolf in sheep’s clothing

makes a mountain out of a molecule

then rides into town on the back of a mule,

seducing with the art of pagan pride

the ugly parents of the beautiful bride.

Strange Rain

Lightning strikes the picnic races,

strange rain falls on sunburnt faces.

A horse stampedes against the storm;

a mob of grinning punters swarm

towards the bookies in the stands …

who cough up coin with jealous hands.

The Difference

Does it say anywhere

in Matthew, Mark, Luke

or John

that the difference between

science and conscience

is con?

Damian Balassone