Alice And The Spooks Poem by Robert Rorabeck

Alice And The Spooks

Rating: 3.7


Little girls in little blonde curls
In reddish frilly messes
Eat their lunch alone,
Served by brunette waitresses
The eyes the color of
Burnishes doors,
Their thoughts slipping from their dresses.

A six year old Alice
Finishes her chicken and waffles,
She goes outside, screams,
Grits her teeth, unloads her guns
The bullets bang
Onomatopoetics.

There are boatloads of boogiemen
Eating the streets,
The gangs of vampires kissing
The sweet coeds’ necks,
While the Goth chicks take
Snapshots like Japanese tourists.

Her mom and dad are out there too,
Dressed like Ralph Lauren and Lash LeRoux,
But they are not who you think they are
As they moan to her, “Why aren’t you
In preschool? ”

But school, she knows, is the worst
Place to be,
Because there’s a hole in the courtyard
As deep as the sea
Out of which the Big Bad things churn,
Not unlike a scoop of ice-cream soft serve.

Down at the end of the street
In the atmospheric light of a terminally ill sun,
Someone is whistling like Clint Eastwood.
She sees who it is, all the old gang,
Death and his boys: Pestilence, Famine, War,
Frank and Jesse James.

They’re all smoking as they come
Out of the brothel.
They just killed all the gods in the sky,
So the heavens lay like breathless still-life—
Like the black apple and the brown pear
They made her finger-paint in art class;
But all she really cares about is that
Her chewing gum is getting tasteless.

She steps forward, our dear young Alice,
Her little blonde curls tied in red bows,
In tumbling, frilly messes.
She swears, she curses, she gives
A useless Jesus the bird,
Then she takes her little foot
And draws a line in the dirt,

She blows a pink bubble,
Cocks her gun and gives all that’s Evil
Ten seconds to run.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Subhas Chandra Chakra 29 September 2017

They just killed all the gods in the sky, So the heavens lay like breathless still-life— Like the black apple and the brown pear They made her finger-paint in art class; A beautiful write that deserved being POD. Thanks poet and congrats.

2 0 Reply
Adeline Foster 22 June 2012

This says more than perhaps the words convey. I too spotted the internal rhyme, it did enhance the impact. I don't suppose you tried to go to Amamzon.com for the book. Whatever that book is about, at least I do hope he knew enough to hire a proof-reader. Adeline

1 0 Reply
Bernard F. Asuncion 29 September 2017

Such a great poem, Robert.... a huge 10+++++

1 0 Reply
Tom Allport 29 September 2017

a very creative and surreal poem that tells a wonderful story of Alice? who the f...is Alice? soz could not resist! .....................brilliantly written R R

0 0 Reply
Richard Wlodarski 29 September 2017

Wow! There is so much going on in this excellent write. One of those poems that's appreciated more with each new reading. Robert, congrats on POD.

0 0 Reply
Rod M.Peters 21 November 2023

I keep coming back to this one, ever since years ago when I first read it. For some reason it keeps getting better and better in my mind.

0 0 Reply
Craig Moses Uche 29 December 2021

This poet is awesome, like a 'Modern Robert Frost' dear i say even better

0 0 Reply
Rini Shibu 29 September 2017

Congratulations for poem of the day Rorabeck...a nice poem to read

0 0 Reply
Anita Aparajita Das 29 September 2017

She swears, she curses, she gives A useless Jesus the bird, Nice poem shared.

0 0 Reply
Seema Sharma Rimi 29 September 2017

Then she takes her little foot And draws a line in the dirt, A nice write. Thanks, poet.10

1 0 Reply
READ THIS POEM IN OTHER LANGUAGES
Robert Rorabeck

Robert Rorabeck

Berrien Springs
Close
Error Success