“Warm Praise”

 “Warm Praise”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Warm praise feeling drained as educators 

switching back-and-forth between 

in-person and online teaching 

workloads doubling

weariness surging 

locking and loading links 

endangering well being ...

“Gathering”

 “Gathering”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Gathering size limits 

viral upticks split decisions 

houses of worship proximity risks 

dissenting opinions ...

“A Sharp Turn”

 “A Sharp Turn”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

A sharp turn up to a staunch launch altitude 

orderly unwavering unfaltering 

acknowledging experience and accomplishments 

taking charge urging cooperation easing gridlock 

VERSUS

no-holds-barred harmful gossip 

botched Corona responses unapologetic hypocrisy 

re-targeting lame-duck dollars affording pardons ...

“Pardoning a Turkey”

 “Pardoning a Turkey”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Pardoning a turkey named, “Peas”

unfortunately “Carrots” refused to concede 

as hammy pageantry remarking grandly,

“It’s too bad for Carrots —

I hereby intend to pardon 

myself as a lame-duck president” ...

“Never Been Harder”

 “Never Been Harder” 

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Never been harder/missing our favorite spots/ fearing harm from microscopic aerosolized droplets/ finding no safe harbors/longingly asking,“Where have all our houseguests gone?”/ aborted gatherings/lacking clatter and buzz/ flirting and laughter/ feeling deep sadness/ empty social calendars/ clamoring for human interaction/ having to fall back on virtual reality/ imagining big bashes/ post vaccination planning ...

“Exhausting”

 “Exhausting”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Exhausting blowing up norms 

asking imploringly, “Are we free or formless?”

having reached our turning point or melting point 

sadly responding, “By golly” or “Golly gosh darn”

connecting the dots to the hot spots 

of  “Democracy’s Debacle” ...

“Lessening Threats and Tensions”

 “Lessening Threats and Tensions”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Lessening threats and tensions/as a subversive sitting president is reckoned, “irrelevant”/dispelling lame-duck “hysterics”/as the 46th president elect compellingly pushes ahead/rationally combating infectious spread/effectively developing credible economic recovery measures/competently accomplishing remarkable “blockage unblocking”/prompting calmative cooperation/ uncommonly resolved by far ... 

“All But Certain”

 “All But Certain”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

All but certain to fail 

ensnared by unspooling conspiracy strands 

of adamant vanity and intractable madness 

ruthlessly refusing to stand down 

as brutally cruel and inexcusable 

virulent subterfuge of our nation’s future ...

“Disjointed”

 “Disjointed”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Disjointed new norms/compared to, “going to war”/issuing dire warnings of generations lost/ launching more and more mobile morgues/ having failed to fend off onslaughts of fall’s airborne indoors/ raising alert levels/ infections reaching world records/grimly measured as “one death every 17 seconds...

“It’s Last Stage”

 “It’s Last Stage”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

It’s last stage

approval within days

on an emergency basis 

challenged

by securing raw ingredients

and creating

high-quality batches for billions

difficult unpredictable finicky timelines

ticking shelf lives viral rewind ...

“Unhinged”

 “Unhinged”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Unhinged self-pitying tragic trajectory

muddled pleas under siege peevish polarity 

dogmatic rancor democratic collapse ...

“A Yowling Wounded Loser”

 “A Yowling Wounded Loser”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

A yowling wounded loser pooh-poohing unity

treasonously refusing to concede 

Tweeting grievous death-dealing conspiracy theories

maliciously turning a blind eye to a lethal virus

spitefully contravening voter tallies

vindictively breaching national security 

ultimately leaving kicking and screaming 

thereby aiding and abetting our enemies ...

“Muddled”

 “Muddled”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Muddled government beyond worry

viruses surging headlining, “THE END IS NIGH”

for a mask-defying chronic liar whining 

about perceived slights raising anxiety 

via vindictive defense firings enemies hi-fiving 

wryly singing, “Bye Bye Miss American Pie”

divisive voices colliding left and right ...

“Worn”

“Worn”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán

Worn down by reality 

having been played

by a divisive administration 

launching countless barrages 

of failed electoral litigation

reacting with anger and shame 

making false allegations of fraud 

refusing to pack his bags

in a power grab of faulty math

miscalculating a frantic “Hail Mary” plan ...

“Contradictions”

 “Contradictions”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom-Suzán 

Contradictions episodic glitches in tracking victories 

reaffirming voting security bolstering democracy 

increasing margins of positive possibilities 

debunking conspiracy theories succeeding 

a lame-duck conman counting

on a self-pardon come-on ...

“It Depends”

 “It Depends”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

It depends on the measure 

widespread versus worst off 

tearing across the on and on 

avoidance of problems

second waves knocking 

testing positive

possible lockdowns 

clicking the stopwatch 

scandalmonger-in-chief beating a retreat...

“Unexplainable”

 “Unexplainable”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Unexplainable deranged behavior as a brutal renunciation of electoral legitimacy weakening our abilities to absorb tensions and conflicts as a pathological bridge too far collapsing into the chaotic anarchy of a national calamity...

“Dirty”

 “Dirty” 

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Dirty, as a trick, the equivalent 

of giving the middle finger 

exploiting the law ignoring norms 

losing sorely refusing to concede defeat 

speciously gripping the Grand Old Party 

loathing honoring prior oaths promoting

personal branding as a national political brand

forming a PAC as an off-ramp for push back ...

“Re-engaging”

 “Re-engaging”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Re-engaging with the World re-assuringly 

moving more carefully while making history 

by stepping back from the brink 

facing crises pledging big thinking 

dispelling magical thinking 

determining healthier paths

after climbing out of a raging nightmare...

“Striking”

 “Striking”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Striking a conciliatory tone 

pausing to listen

establishing legitimacy 

trusting instincts for healing 

beginning immediately

eager for clarity 

intermixing tragedy and tradition 

as the mortar to shore up repair and restore 

our fractured national character

at long last...

“On the Cusp”

 “On the Cusp”

by Suzán Jiván Mom 

& Mom-Mom Suzán 

On the cusp of stepping up 

from the destructive bluster of a conman 

applying the soothing balm 

of a calming, “C’mon man” 

president-elect policy ...

“Prolonging”

 “Prolonging”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Prolonging the wait

calmness versus angst 

waxing and waning

presidential administrations 

fluctuating timetables 

patient self-restraint

versus specious allegations 

of fraudulent electoral races ...

“Tensions”

 “Tensions”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Tensions rising races tightening leads narrowing 

uphill battles protesting over ballot tallies

national tabs going up for grabs 

aggrieved masculinity centering on bullying 

plus stinginess with constituencies 

never speaking to diversity strategically Tweeting 

pleading, “Winning is easy - losing is hard” ...

“Edgy”

 “Edgy”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Edgy presidential contests national nervousness expecting the unexpected reality television check ignoring the menace of a deadly spread mocking precautionary measures as shouting people pack close together exposing themselves to infective rhetoric...

“Bracing”

 “Bracing”

by Suzán Jiván Mom

& Mom-Mom Suzán 

Bracing 

for lines and lawsuits 

while weighing the possibilities 

of a flip district to district 

trying to stay calm 

toning it down a notch 

hoping to vote out

a boastful POTUS poser ...

“Uncertainty”

 “Uncertainty”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Uncertainty 

weighing heavily 

in a gut-wrenching race 

“It’s getting crazy in the battleground states!”

monitoring pop-ups 

emptying ballot-clogged drop-off boxes 

as nonpartisan jobbers 

process scanning bars 

in darkened public-works garages...

“Bolstered”

 “Bolstered”

by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán 

Bolstered

raising hopes 

of containing democracy’s erosion 

turning out in droves 

both important and appropriate 

as strategies of battling 

“election stress disorder”

gaining strong support

restorative citizens’ voices ...