minimalist poetry

Health Problems

I hear you’ve been
Dealing with some
Health problems lately.
Cheer up, I’ve got
A plan to get you
The help you need.
Forget all that confusing
Stuff about single-payer,
What I’m offering is
Vastly better.
Simply take all the
Extra money you have
From your $7.50-an-hour
Job and put it in
One of these magical
Accounts guaranteed to
Pay for almost nothing.

Get the Poetry Collection
Unconventional Being - Minimalist Poetry Book by Guy Farmer

Readers around the world have found pieces of themselves in these poems. Discover the collection.

Get Your Copy on Amazon

They Go about Their Business

Sitting by himself,
Hoping someone will
Stop by,
Ask how he’s doing.
Nobody does,
They never do,
Maintenance of
Flimsy normalcy
Being much more comfortable
Than reaching out.
They go about their business.

Directives

Please adhere
To the plan,
Without thinking
Or questioning,
Just do what we
Tell you to do
And keep your
Thoughts to yourself.
At all times,
Think only about
What we tell you
To think,
All free-thinkers
Shall be re-educated
In one of our
Facilities.
As always,
Continue watching
The screen for
Directives.

Fit of Rage

As soon as he realizes
That he will have to
Provide health care for
His underpaid employees,
He breaks into a remarkable
Fit of rage, screaming that
He’ll be unable to absorb
The costs and that he’ll
Have to raise prices.
Lost in all the bluster are
The human beings that toil
For him, night and day,
And can’t make ends meet,
Especially since he
Reduced everyone’s hours
To skirt the new laws,
While he relaxes
In his opulent mansion.

Another Opportunity

Waiting for something
That might never happen.

Standing by
Just in case.

The days pass,
Nothing changes.

Optimism becomes
Hopelessness.

Another opportunity
To learn and grow.

Unlit

Unfeeling,
Although they writhe
And contort at his feet,
Gasping for air,
Struggling to live
Despite circumstance.

He never did care for
Much more than himself,
His history etched into
Him, inky darkness
Unlit by empathy or
The simplest kindness.

Beyond Their Own Needs

All the members of a
Small group are given an
Equal amount of money and
Asked to either give part of
It to their fellow members
Or keep it for themselves.

Most participants choose to
Give some of their money away,
The well-being of the group
Being more important than
The accumulation of wealth
For personal gain.

In every group, there are one
Or two individuals who do not see
Beyond their own needs and
Cavalierly decide to keep
What they have while continuing
To receive money from the others.

Wait Fifteen Minutes

He tells me to wait
Fifteen minutes and
Everything will be
Taken care of,
I thank him for his help,
Feeling some relief.
When I follow up,
I find out he did nothing.

Making Decisions

Sitting on his high perch,
Absolutely enamored with
The sound of his own voice,
Pontificating endlessly,
Tediously, greatly relishing
His contemptuous, haughty,
Condescending pronouncements.
An intoxicated appointee,
He savors every delectable
Morsel of sovereignty and
Dominance he wields,
Making decisions far too
Important for a person of his
Vanity and numbness,
A sweep of the hand,
A dead, arrogant smile.