Are Those Rubber Sole Shoes?

One day my body
will fall away
like a peanut shell.
That's what I learned
in my yeshiva days.

Those were just words
and that was long before
the nut started cracking
filling with dotted lines
to tear upon.

Those were just words
spoken with no due respect
to the irrelevant piece
the unessential
the husk.

I'm 45 and it's 7:20
treadmill sweat trickles my head
I self inflict pain
because I - the rider and the horse -
I want to stay alive.

To Francis

You are not my esrog
You are not my bridge
You are not my spittoon
You are not my springboard

To use you to collect my points
would be to abuse you
To count on you for my advancement
would be to discount you

You are a survivor
You are an other
You are a man
You are a soul

To truly see you
would be a blessing
To place politics aside
would be to rise above.

Hindu Kush, New York

In an intermission from sleep

I count Marco Polo sheep
Find my way to this screen
See what wisdom I may glean
While it's dark and I'm alone
A situation not unknown

Why is it that I'm awake?
It's an emergency brake.
Wake up! My souls calls to me
My American angelica tree
Sleeplessness is my burning bush
My moment of Hindu Kush

I don't need to eat or drink
Thoughts bleed like indelible ink
I worry about wounded friends
Ponder the goodness we intend
Hope for the welfare of us all
Pray this isn't the last call

Written on December 14, 2011 · New York, NY · 

Original, from Nov 4, 2012-

After Sandy
By Neil Fleischmann 

Never take 
the short end
of being a friend;
you never know 
what you send
or can tell how 

much you mend
with your
unique blend
of being
a friend.

Edited Dec 6, 2014-

After Sandy
By Neil Fleischmann 

Never take 
the short end
of being a friend;
You never know 
what you send
Or can tell how 

much you mend
With your
unique blend
of being
a friend.

So never take the short end.

0r-

After Sandy
By Neil Fleischmann 

Never take 
the short end
of being a friend;
you never know 
what you send
or can tell how 

much you mend
with your
unique blend.

So, never take 

the short end

of being
a friend.

Sometimes writing can feel like nothing but writing.  At the same time it can sound like a calling.  And everything else fades away like nothing.

Personalities walk this earth disguised by educations. Upbringings remain. Confidence reigns. Biology and chemistry compete for the win. The patience of the introvert wears thin.