THE SHIFTER PLACE
In a mobile home, where the commute
to and from jobs idles at any curb,
the resident resides in a bucket seat
addressing a dashboard between shifts.
Lucky to have somewhere to go,
lucky to have shelter, the citizen
without a mailbox steers away
from parking meters until nightfall.
The drive-thru diner stretches out
adjustables and then legs to perform
safety checks around the rusted
and plastic vehicle after supper.
Each tire gets kicked again
because sidewalls bounce back.
Bathroom breaks behind bushes,
clean ups for face, pits, and crotch
alternate among public libraries,
grocery stores, and fast-food joints.
The sacred space with a windshield
and wipers that rarely work, lets in
the light each morning on the room
housing every belonging owned.
GAMP CAMP
Under a social umbrella,
the momentary refugees
shelter from a heavy reign
where connections take
advantage for a team effort.
Daytime tenting under stars
and stipes while canvassing
and with evening prayers
that soldiers join forces
at the center post powder dry,
tender-foot-citizens reach
out into a continental climate.
A thunderhead seams the sky
and plains in the Southwest.
Sharing insights and vision
with a runner and trusting
the resources stretching,
the cooperation canopy
counts on ribs, heads,
and feet to go the distance
for democracy in a country.
Richard Murphy’s latest collections, Elephant by Bass Clef Books, Storage Shed and Inside Stories by Resource Publications and Mind of Europe: A Genealogy to The Fat Man and Susan Constant by Cyberwit were published 2024-2025, following First Aid and Footholds (2023). His poetry won The Poetry Prize at Press Americana twice for Americana (2013), The Left Behind (2021), and Gival Press Poetry Prize for Voyeur (2008).
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