Warning
By John L. Holgerson
after the poem Warning by Leonard Cohen
If your neighbor disappears
Oh if your neighbor disappears
The Hispanic man from Venezuela
who helped you paint your house
or the young woman who babysat
your children while dressed proudly
in that rainbow-colored blouse
If your neighbor disappears
Oh if your neighbor disappears
Don’t ask what happened
to the multi-tatted Black man
who lived on your block
or the foreign college student
with whom you liked to talk
Beware of the men wearing balaclavas
who cruise our streets each day
They have plans you can’t ignore
or else there’ll come a tapping,
rapping, pounding on your door
When your neighbor disappears
Oh when your neighbor disappears.
John L. Holgerson is the author of three books of poetry, Convictions of the Heart (In Case of Emergency Press 2021), Unnecessary Tattoo and Other Stains on a Stainless Steel Heart (Finishing Line Press 2016) and Broken Borders (Wasteland Press 2012). He has published poems in small literary journals, both in print and online. He is listed in the Poets & Writers’ Directory of Poets and Writers; is one of three MassPoetry representatives for Bristol County, Massachusetts; and is co-host of For the Love of Words, airing on Easton Community Access Television in North Easton, Massachusetts. The monthly program showcases performances of local, regional, national and international poets and musicians. For more than three decades, he was a criminal defense attorney with The Massachusetts Defenders Committee. Visit his website.
Photo credit: Prachatai via a Creative Commons license.
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