The King and I

Like George V1, the king

subject to stuttering

I had a speech therapist too

who taught me how

to word switch

to philander with synonyms

I could slip into

how to pace myself

and summon the scribe

of stutterers before me

Lewis Carroll

Neville Shute

Updike

& dear old Aesop whose thoughts

often outran

the tired tortoise of his tongue.

In Praise of Slowness

It was World Turtle Day last week.

I was a little slow off the mark

But I’m onto it now penning these lines.

I’d write a little more; trouble is

things are whizzing by , my head is spinning.

I’ve got to slow down, take a pit stop,

Pace myself a little. Whew!

I should be done by next World Turtle Day

But I wouldn’t want to stick my neck out.