Cold (an acrostic poem)

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Chilled to her bones, she tried to finish her typing, listening to the percussive clatter of the keys

Only the chattering wasn’t just the keyboard, but her teeth beat a duet with her fingers

Leaving her to wonder if the furnace was ever going to kick in

Didn’t remember she had placed a hold on it so no heat came for a long time

Pulse (an acrostic poem)

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Palpitations made him stop in his tracks

Until his heart began to beat normally

Listening, he could hear others fleeing to the north

So he continued fleeing eastward and hoped his pursuers would go in that direction

Except hope was extinguished when a slug ripped through his chest

Over (an acrostic poem)

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On top of all things, Macy waited

Verifying that everyone in her domain was doing what she desired

Everyone today seemed to be listening to her wishes

Reaching our with one paw, she batted at the dust to demonstrate her approval

Divide (an acrostic poem)

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Debating merits is a noble cause

If done in good faith, listening to other’s argument

Verifying your stance is what you want to defend

Instead, today we prefer to find our tribe, our island

Denying that the other side might have something to add

Enabling the feedback to build walls that opposing views can not scale  

Together (an acrostic poem)

 

There is so much you can’t do by yourself

Others are needed to make it happen

Getting your tribe on board might not be easy

Everyone might have different opinions or a different way to do it

That’s when you need to realize we are all in this

Here is where we need to work extra hard listening and not attacking

Enabling the collective to try and fail as we look towards success

Realizing this is why in these tough times we need to stick…

 

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Candle (an acrostic poem)

Can’t believe she is sitting across from me

And the kids are nowhere in sight

Now in the flickering light

Dinner is slowly consumed

Listening to each other without the constant munchkin banter

Enjoying the birthday of his marriage

 

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Bridge (an acrostic poem)

Building a way across the political divide takes hard work

Republicans and Democrats listening to each other

Informed compromise forged in the fires of healthy debate

Determined to leave something solid and structurally sound

Giving everyone a path into the future

Especially those being left at the side of the road

 

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