Randall Rogers is a Midwestern US writer.  His theme is transcendence in the universe(s).  He lives in Rapid City, South Dakota, on the edge of the Black Hills, with his wife and two armadillos.  “Dead Beats” with Chris Butler is his latest poetry collection.

How Much Of History Is True?

Twixt life 
and death 
birth and evaporation 
lies inexplicable glee 
and honest hopeless despair; 
steady the craft! 
too much is just enough  
to determine holistically 
a bigger picture 
of despair 
redeeming
death’s decline 
in euphonious cacophony 
of euphoric joy.
Thy tractor beam
of salvation. 
 

Octopus Beak Butthole

Time starts out slow 
ramps up to draw out 
or close at a furious 
whimpering pace 
dragging one and all 
along indefinitely (for 
the ride).
Its goal is to wear 
you out or prop you up 
to weave fantasies of 
comfort that forestall 
the thought of total 
destruction and its 
consequence. 
So gorge on drugs.

Jackalope Boy

I’m a cowboy dirt farmer 
I’m hardscrabble!
I can take it 
and let me tell you I can dish it out
I’m talking wisdom!
Hardscrabble prairie practical wisdom! 
How to survive! 
How to handle extremes of heat,
cold, blizzard, tornado, and fellow 
prairie immigrant folk waiting 
for checks, in fear of Indian (Native American)
attack
No, the prairie, that cottonwood hallowed place,
is no place for non-sissies.