Cleaning An Old House Poem by RIC BASTASA

cleaning an old house
takes a lot of time and
effort

on this day daddy
leads us

older brother gets
a broom
younger sister gets
the rugs
i get a pail of water
and some
detergents

some leaves heaped in
the room from that
broken window

got an insect spray
and killed the roaches
and those bugs and
ticks on the floor and
some corners

the rats are next
we drive them away and
destroy all their nests
on the ceiling and
beneath the floors

does someone question
the deaths of roaches?
the dislocation of the
rats?
the annihilation of the
ticks and fleas?

we did it finally
the house is cleaned
the roof is fixed and
there are no more leaks
the floor is shiny
a fly slides
the window is fixed
and the doors too
expired bulbs are replaces
with those brighter ones
the family picture hangs
on the wall
at the center of the
sala

that night we had
supper
after a prayer lead by
daddy
mommy is beside him and
we the children
surround

there is love and laughter
and stronger camaraderie
after the house is cleaned.