Hard Work

          

              Hard Work

It’s hellacious work out in the

Extremities of the weather.

When exhales become

Frozen, defined shapes, that’s cold!

It’s killer work when arms,

Protruding from their florescent

Orange or yellow bibs, shine like

They’ve been polished by an invisible

Kiwi or Esquire spirit.

Roberto Clemente

            Made hard look easy.

That’s what artists do.

Tote that barge,

Lift that bale,

You load 16 tons

Workin’ on a chain gang.

With Big Bad John or John Henry,

Working hard is heroic. With

Samson, however, it’s suicide.

Are you working hard?

            Hardly workin’;

Working hard at staying out of hard work.

Trying to use a new

Language is grueling. You

Get tang-toungled. Or tu

Is used when ustedes should

Be. Even in the Mother

Tongue it’s rigorous

Work to stare at the screen, or

Out the window and then

Attempt to frame an idea with words.