Werewolves

The night felt eerie
the moon was full
his girlfriend said

she was going to
pay him a visit

he knew that meant
she wouldn’t be
her usual sweet self

he knew that hell
was coming

instead of knocking
she howled at the
front door

instead of a woman
she’d become
a werewolf

as she did every
full moon night

he howled back
a werewolf as well
though reluctantly

he enjoyed the kills
but upon waking
he felt regrets

when his girlfriend
entered his home

he shot her dead
with a silver bullet

then he shot himself
to death as well.

Bob Boyd

A Woman in the Philippines Mistakenly Worshiped Shrek for 4 Years Thinking He was Buddha

I read about a woman in the Philippines
who bought a Shrek statue at a shop there
she thought it was a statue of the Buddha

the body was the same as the bodies of Buddha
in real Buddha statues everywhere
the face was clearly that of Shrek

she worshiped the statue for four years
burning incense before it daily

some people might have found that funny
some people might have thought she was stupid

I wholeheartedly believe the Absolute
honored her devotion
I believe that though she was mistaken
the Absolute doesn’t care
in Its eyes her sincere and persistent devotion
outweighed her mistaking Shrek for the Buddha

despite learning of her error, she is going to keep
worshiping the stature as the Buddha
and burning incense before it daily

this says to me, it’s working for her
and I’m almost feeling like buying one of those
Buddha-like statues in support of her

I have seen they’re plentiful for sale online
and from the neck down, they are Buddha.

Bob Boyd

In Memory of Bozzi

I learned the other day you died,
was sad to hear you passed on,
got a little teary-eyed.

You, charismatic, unlike
any other, uniquely cool,
always witty and fun,
I felt as if you would live forever,
even though I hadn’t seen you
in many decades.

I saw your photo in your obit.
You looked great for 79,
youthful and radiant.
You didn’t look like a man
about to die, not at all.

I hope you’re in a better world
living in total peace and bliss
with your wife who died before you.
It seems unbelievable you’re gone.

If you see Joe Drew, Mike McHugh,
or Dennis Doughty there, could you
tell them I said Hello, and that I look
forward to joining you all on the other side?

Maybe there it will be 5 o’clock everywhere
and we can get free tickets to a Jimmy Buffet concert,
or hear Toby Keith singing “How Do You Like Me Now?”

RIP Bozzi. You are truly missed.

Bob Boyd

Logistical Religious Beliefs

Do you know that
often your religious beliefs
are logistical?

Born in the Middle East
most likely a Muslim.

Born in the deep South
you might be a Southern Baptist.
At the least, you’re probably
a Prostestant.

Born anywhere near Rome,
odds are overwhelming you’re
a Catholic.

India? Hindu, most likely,
though you could be a Buddhist

Tibet, Buddhist for sure.

China? 91 Percent atheists
and you might be one.

Me, born in Massachusetts
and been many places
studied many religions
and spiritual paths.
A believer in a Cosmic Christ
but not dogmatically.
A believer in many paths to
the same mountaintop.
A believer in higher states
of consciousness and what
the Hindus call Sat Chit Ananda
Eternal Bliss Consciousness.

Bob Boyd

Friends and Classmates From My Past Are Dying

The once seemingly
impossible
has happened
friends from my
past are dying
classmates from
my class of 1964
are also dying
the trouble is when
I think of those
friends from the past
and those classmates
I remember them
as they were when
young and alive
so their dying
seems impossible
and unreal to me
but of course
in this impermanence
nothing stays young
and everything dies.

Bob Boyd

Even Thoughts of Spiders Creep Me Out

I can deal with thoughts of werewolves, vampires
ghosts, all kinds of snakes
but thoughts of spiders creep me out

I know it’s an instinctive thing, born with it
and the bigger the spider, the worse the thought
like the spider with a 10 inch leg span

God, how that creeps me totally out
a spider as wide as a trash can cover
worse is the thought of it approaching me

maybe thoughts of spiders don’t creep you out
in that respect you’re better than me
and you probably have a tarantula as a pet

or you’re like a beautiful Swedish woman I once knew
who was good with having spiders and webs
all over her house

remembering the Swedish spider lady and all
her spiders and webs, I’m getting more creeped out
and thank God I didn’t fall in love with her.

Bob Boyd