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Tony Valuch lives in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. His poetry has been
published in both Canada and South Korea. His first book,
BLOODRUSHES, came out in 2005 and he has recently completed his
second called A FLEETING GLIMPSE OF MAPLE. He enjoys doing poetry
readings in Southern Ontario.
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SELECTIVE HEARING
Listen. The world speaks.
Don’t you hear…
…frustration in a babe’s cry?
…impatience in a car’s horn?
…energy in a child’s laugh?
…anger in a thunderclap?
…futility in
a police siren?
Can your ears detect…
…promise in a lover’s whisper?
…warning in a wind’s howl?
…curiosity in a phone
ringing?
…welcome in a
dog’s bark?
…ego in a parent’s praise?
Have you ever listened to…
…guarantees given by government
…rape screams from a dying world?
…predictions reported by medi
…apathy voiced by our
youth?
…advice from
your friends?
Everybody listens. But do they hear?
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DOOR
Hear that? Howl. Long and full of woe.
The sound is chilling, origin NOT thrilling:
Being just outside my door.
Heard it before. This howl’s echo.
Anticipated its tone, muffled its drone
With sometimes shaky promises.
Suddenly it’s gone. Left in an instant.
Its memory chased and now replaced
By a pleasant, plopping pitter-patter.
Rain drops tireless, steady and stubborn
Like the constant beat of a million feet
Marching in unhampered fury.
An ember splits its wooden shroud
Surprising my ear, creating a fear
Whose power is lost in translation,
Then quickly regained by a vigorous,
Omnipotent crash, followed by a flash
Of angry light and a torrential yell.
House shakes, the door shivers,
And then the hush. What a rush!
Now the leaves are gossiping…
Leaning far forward, listening
To the other side, ears wide…
I hear howl. Long and full of woe.
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