Finger on the Pulse

She was on the floor

Choking with a piece of meat lodged in her throat

She was a guest at the wedding

Dying

Put a finger on her neck

Her pulse is slowly disappearing

Better to make a sudden ad-hoc tracheostomy

Before she dies 

On the wedding dance floor

Ambulance sirens blare in the distance

Attempting to speed on the winding roads

Flashing lights

Dinner abruptly stopped

No party

No happiness

Tainted marriage

By meat death

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.06.15.00.20@130BklynNYC

Ten Minutes to Ten

Ten to Ten

That’s all it took

10 more minutes

After 10 months

After 10 years

Just 10 more minutes

Moments on a clock

Counting down just ten more

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

0

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.05.16.58.26@345ParkNYC

Berlin Hauptbahnhof

A forgotten knock at the door

A denied entry as the result of past trauma

A film orchestrated a murder

A Muslim woman and a Jewish Man

They fell in love in New York

They held hands as they lay in bed

They could not acknowledge the silence they both serve

They could not commit to the fray

Surrendering to realism

Getting caught in the prison of love

Gutting one’s own internal clairvoyance

Labeling each other terrorists

A caffeine infused chocolate platter

A Moroccan cat flirting at the table

A vinyl record skipping in the summer heat

A return to the scene of the crime

They fell in love in Berlin

They drenched the sheets with their sweat

They erased their memories

They committed to the moment

Surrendering to idealism

Getting caught in international waters

Gutting the commanding womb

Labeling each other mother and father

A man and a woman

They fell in love

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.04.12.26.49@345ParkNYC

Unidentified Insects in Your Ear

Insects

Coming through the pipes

Breaking through your window screens

Forcing you to lower your defenses

Insects

Borrowing your time

Taking up your space

Making your bed with spotted sheets

Insects

Coming from other lands

Traveling on planes and trains

Entering through tiny holes

Insects 

Falling from the sky

Hatching from the bark

Digging from the dirt

Insects

Migrating from all directions

Floating to the surface of the pond

Sprouting from the darkest places

Insects

Riding the pollen in the wind

Hiding under candy wrappers

Attached to the wooden picnic table

Insects

Begging for revolution

Forming a brigade

Amassing at the borders

Insects

      Dancing 

            Tickling

                  Sucking

      Burrowing

            Buzzing

                  Biting

In your ear

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.03.14.48.35@345ParkNYC

The Man Missing One Hand

As I was exiting

The man missing one hand was attempting to enter

His left hand was on the handle of the door

He had no keys

His right hand was missing

I pulled the door handle down

And let the man missing one hand to enter the building

He entered the building

And I exited the building

That was the last I saw of the man missing one hand

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.03.12.31.21@345ParkNYC

Heart Attack

Left a message at the beep

Had a heart attack

Better call me back

Shades pulled down closed

Tight sheets on the bed

Temporarily full of lead

Gurney covered in my horror

Plead for mercy

Flatlined controversy

Lost blood to the chambers

Had to halt every action

For a heart extraction

Sounds of the heart monitor

Going lub-dub lub-dub

Now part of the zipper club

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.03.09.50.00@345ParkNYC

The Sea

The sea is swollen

With choices

Of the unborn future

And the haunting past

The sea is full

With decisions 

Of the unknown tomorrows

And the fear of history

The sea is

Violent

And unforgiving

Turbulent sways topple the indestructible

With towering waves overturning ships

Crashing and pounding upon deserted shores

Swirling emotions into the void

Carving destructive paths

Refuses to yield

Breaking the nerves of the most honest men

Tormenting the grieving 

Raging without pause

A graveyard of the lost

Letting anger swallow all the living

Adds salt to your wounds

A treacherous pull to the deepest bottom

Savage with no end

Brutal without heart

To speak ill of the sea is to commit treason

Despite all the relentless hostility to my existence

Tossed in the sea

Is where I’d rather be

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.02.03.08.11.22@345ParkNYC

The King

The day the king dies

There will be a celebration like no other

The greatest celebration

Some may even say the biggest celebration

There will be jubilation like no other

The greatest jubilation

Some may even say the biggest jubilation

There will be cake like no other

The greatest cake

Some may even say the biggest cake

There will be fireworks like no other

The greatest fireworks

Some may even say the biggest fireworks

There will be feasts like no other

The greatest feasts

Some may even say the biggest feasts

There will be parties like no other

The greatest parties

Some may even say the biggest parties

There will be festivals like no other

The greatest festivals

Some may even say the biggest festivals

There will be dancing in the streets like no other

The greatest dancing in the streets

Some may even say the biggest dancing in the streets

There will be parades like no other

The greatest parades

Some may even say the biggest parades

There will be applause like no other

The greatest applause

Some may even say the biggest applause

There will be laughter like no other

The greatest laughter

Some may even say the biggest laughter

There will be screams of joy like no other

The greatest screams of joy

Some may even say the biggest screams of joy

Thank you for your attention to this matter!

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.29.11.15.43@345ParkNYC

Vanishing Thief

Under immense pressure

Required surrender to such grand pleasure

Cataclysms spinning around

Hands and feet shackled and bound

Forces unbeknownst to any reality

Enter my room and bend over my knee

Existence in question

Booked a midnight fuck session

Telecommunications interrupting

Evil aliens abducting

Everyone swipes their credit into bankruptcy

Bring out the clown cavalry

From sky satellites falling 

Creatures of night crawling

Politicians vomiting a greasy lie

Fighter jets do or die

Televisions exploding in our living room

Welcoming our existence to last doom

Genetic harassing molecules

Below the belt jewels

Violently pursuing our blood

Forty-day and forty-night flood

Micro plastics rollercoaster veins

Never can break from the day job chains

Drifting in and out of magnetic waves

Dancing at midnight on top of graves

Polymers and digesting bleach

Listening to the pastor preach

Everything released in hi-fi stereo

From trans queens to yesterday’s hoe

Lightning rounds

No kings, no crowns

Multi-travel pass

Motorcade to midnight mass

Running the yearly marathon

Drowning from dusk to dawn

Trajectory launched to outer space

She sat on my face at last night’s grace

Big brown paper bag suffocation

Parallel and perpendicular streets negotiation

Riverbed swans

Time to visit all the cons

Open all the solitary confinement cells

Ring the high church bells

Chariot on fire with an iron horse

Orbiting at hypersonic G-force

Embracing the dying planet

Below the world’s greatest island of granite

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.29.10.48.56@345ParkNYC

Interstate 287

Felt like yesterday

We were just young kids

Swinging in the shade of the oak

We forged a great friendship through the years

Walked along the evening railroad tracks

With our fingers crossed

Placed our ears on the rails

Listened for a tremble

Felt for a vibration

Interstate 287 was beneath the overpass

Cars and semi-trucks swooshing

I extended my hand to yours

We kissed for the first time

As a teen, I would have exclaimed 

The earth took a pause on its axis

My heart sank in happy disbelief

You felt for me like I felt for you

All it took was a commitment like no other

We had to pursue our own volition

Take our unlocked hearts to the swooshing of I-287

Or the freight train barreling down upon us

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.28.15.03.36@345ParkNYC

Empty

Empty the casket

Fill the tank with gasoline

Empty promises

With no more agreements

Children are out of the house now

I am left with an empty nest

Went around back

Emptied the trash

My stomach growls to be fed

It is empty

A dead man said

I came home late

To an empty house

With an empty bag

And found on my porch

An empty box

To place on my empty bed

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.28.13.06.20@345ParkNYC

Setting Sun

Sitting at the red traffic light

Waiting for the light to change

I was going to turn left

The clicking of my turn signal

Click Clack Click Clack

My hands on the steering wheel

Tapping to the rhythm of the

Click Clack Click Clack

In my rearview mirror

I see the sun setting

Gorgeous hues of

orange, red, yellow, and purple

Like flames, flowers, or fireworks

It was hard to drive away

Knowing I’ll never see her again

But I was

Sitting at the red traffic light

Waiting for the light to change

I was going to turn left

The clicking of my turn signal

Click Clack Click Clack

My hands on the steering wheel

Tapping to the rhythm of the

Click Clack Click Clack

Click Clack Click Clack

I had a heart attack

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.28.10.53.49@345ParkNYC

Feathers

In my blind effort

I had sewn the crow’s feathers

To my own shoulder blades

I admit

My idea was ill conceived

But I had to fly to the top of the mountain

To see you one more time

Instead, in my leap of faith

I fell to the ground

And the coroner announced my death

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.28.10.45.45@345ParkNYC

With My Eyes, I See

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see what you’re saying

What you’re hiding

What you’re slipping under the table

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see what you’re hoping for

What you’re praying for

Celebrating for

Paying for

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

Under the covers

Under the cloudy sky

Under the planked wood

Under the ocean’s tide

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you turning the corner

I see you ignoring me

Talking to me

Taking my picture

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

In the mirror

In reverse

I see you involved

I see you evolving

I see you with your head down in that book

I see you with your head between your legs

I see you in the court of law

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you on a winter trail

I see you with the wind blowing in your hair

I see you in my dreams

I see you in the last pew

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you behind closed doors

Writing me a farewell

Digging your own grave

Forgetting my name

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you cheating

And cheering

And eating

And ignoring

I see you baking that big birthday cake

I see barking like a dog

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you blind siding me 

I see you car crashing

I see you sleeping

Hovering over me

Tying my knot

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you finding the parking spot

I see you getting a lotto ticket

Hiding behind the tree

Following me

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you buying chocolates

I see you playing games

Tuning the piano

Whispering to the bumble bee

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

I see you smoking that pipe

Carbon dating

Intense mating

Lightning dancing

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

I see you driving fast

I see you diving low

I see you dying slow

Lying

Prying

I see you not minding your own business

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

I see you painting the portrait

I see you holding on

I see you letting go

I see you raising your ego

I see you in the end

At tomorrow’s bend

I see you holding my hand

I see you pretend

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

Biting your nails

Sanding your toes

I see you spitting in the funnel

Doing those science experiments

I see you drinking black coffee

Churning over

Opening that new financial account

Knocking your teeth out

Falling down the stairs

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

Growing your beard

Tattooing your skin

Popping that pimple

Buying products on TV

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

I see you giving your testimony

I see you hiking the mountain

Going up on the down escalator

Steaming up the shower

Denying children

I see you

I see what you’re doing there

I see you bowling a strike

I see you going downhill in second

I see you breathing a sigh of relief

Beating a bucket on your head

Dancing to the beat of a drum

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you spray that perfume

I see you cut your hair

I see you grade student papers

Open up maps

And your GPS

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you opening the freezer

Chill the meat

With a knife slice the beef

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you in an improper gown

In a proper town

I see you with an upside-down frown

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you provoke the spider in the corner

I see you invite your sister and your brother

Ignore mother

Mail the package with proper postage

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you falsely the records

I see you in traffic stopped at a red light at night

I see you combing your hair

I see you sucking on that peppermint candy cane

Listening to vinyl records

Dusting my skin

Forgetting

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you milking yourself

I see you with the gun in the air

Shooting off rounds

Plump and white and with bullet fists

I see you underground and over shadowing

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

With your fancy satellite phone

With your gold grill

I see you with your big fat wallet

Credit cards

Porcelain toilet

Safe outback

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see you eating leftovers

I see you at the complaint department

Putting me in chains

Shutting me out

Spitting in my face

I see 

I see what you’re doing there

I see

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.19.37.10@130BklynNYC

The Effortless Fly

The effortless fly

Is poetic

In the most romantic sense

This little black insect

Landing on the hair on my arm

Tickling me

On a warm spring day

The sway of the trees

Give way to the slight wind

The effortless fly

Lives for a few weeks

In the passage of time

So much shorter than mine

As I swat and swat and swat

This dead bloody effortless fly

On the palm of my hand

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.17.08.19@345ParkNYC

Closures

I mailed her a detailed letter

Told her why I killed love for her

Admitted my mistakes

And she returned the favor

My desk calendar got dusty

A few weeks pass

And in my mailbox in the front yard,

I found the most agonizing battle cry

She was pregnant with my child

When she fell so ill in her mind

And sliced her wrists from bow to stern

(I don’t have a desk calendar)

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.16.54.07@345ParkNYC

The River Fails Me

I took the long walk around the Hudson River

From the bay to the beginnings

It took all my life

And my life out of me

From me

I saw the train coming at full speed

I saw the George Washington bridge

I saw the paralyzed drivers

Not know what to do

To drive around the flashing lights

Or to stop and stare

I sung in unison 

With all the stadium fans

I packed like a rat

And had an eighteen-wheeler wheel off all my possessions to Brooklyn on a hot summer day

As darkness set in

And the moon enveloped the sun

I heard the whistle of love

The whistle of love

The whistle of a train barreling down on me

Couldn’t get up in time

Couldn’t get out of bed

Slept in and out of a coma

Wish I just had a comma

Or semi colon

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.16.36.10@345ParkNYC

In Reverse

I have no regrets

Just plenty of returns

And burning agents

Scrubbed floors with bleach

And swallowed when they told me not too

I started to write down all my regrets

But then I remembered I have no regrets

Except

The regrets I can’t remember

The regrets I don’t admit too

Or don’t name

Or choose to remember

Just plenty of returns

And exchanges

Even foul smells

So, I washed my skin

And I washed my clothes

Rubbed out the dirt

And rubbed out the blood

Regrettably, I wish to inform you  –

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.16.26.34@345ParkNYC

Just Passing Through

I filled the prescriptions at the drug store

Picked them up the very next morning

Took the 7-day course

And now I’m on the daily course

And now I’m on the nightly course

Routine

So many prescriptions

Juggle them in this medical jungle

That I have become so familiar with

Getting old and dying is so complicated

This is wrong

That is wrong

This is falling apart

Because of this, this is also falling apart

So, prescribe another medication

Swallow the pills

One after the other

To extend this life

One passes the other

Pass the other

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.16.01.46@345ParkNYC

Couch

Placed my skull on the table

The table at the end of your couch

You were watching television

Ignoring me as usual

As you usually do

You didn’t even realize

That I took my skull out of my head

And placed it on the table

The table at the end of your couch

© 2026 David Greg Harth

26.01.27.15.04.22@345ParkNYC