Second Coming No. 342 — December 27, 2025
A poem-a-day protest against the threat posed to our democracy by Donald Trump and his fascist regime
Christopher Barry
Due to safety concerns, my child’s class trip to DC was not allowed to do a walking tour of the National Mall
Spring 2025
There were illegals crawling out of Lincoln’s nose,
gay shit happening at Washington
and insider trading at Jefferson.
Crackheads near the carousel were making ducks
out of aluminum foil.
Even MLK wasn’t safe surrounded by all those uniforms:
somebody had to be arrested for destroying that mountain.
And that wall is shiny with symbolism.
Kids might walk away thinking about liberal arts degrees.
They could have visited the monument
to the war where we saved the world
the one that proved we were fearless and free.
But better safe than sorry.
Christopher Barry is a teacher and writer from New Hampshire. His most recent work can be found in Feral, Sport Literate, Scavengers and Poet's Row.
Second Coming is a project of Indolent Books, a haven for poets over 50 without a first book and a welcoming space for women, people of color, queer and trans writers, and others who do not fit molds or conform to expectations.
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“But better safe than sorry” grabbed me at the end. Nicely done.
So good, so tight.