Three Poems by Richard Schnap

In the Checkout Line

I see it in the eyes
Of supermarket cashiers
The reflections of
A thousand faces

That all seem the same
Pilgrims in search
Of something to save
Them from themselves

While hidden voices
From an out of date past
Speak of products
Not made any more

Blending into old songs
Transporting them back
To a time when they
Once made them dance



Stormbound

When I watch the clouds darken
I think of my father's expression
As his rage would rise to possess him

And when I see a stab of lightning
I think of my mother burning
Our dinner because she was drunk

And when I hear a roar of thunder
I think of my sister's madness
For the lovers that always strayed

And when I feel the raindrops falling
I think of the tears they'd be shedding
Alone in their shadow-stained nights



Things My Father Said

Don't run down the stairs like that
You're liable to break down the house

Don't push that shopping cart so fast
You could ruin somebody's shoes

No I don't like that music
Take it off right away

I don't care if he hurt you
He's never done anything to me

If you want to go into business
You'll have to get an M.B.A.

I know what will happen to you
You're going to join a cult

You have to get it together
I'm planning to retire soon

For all of my life I have worried
What others have thought of me

Richard Schnap is a poet, songwriter and collagist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  His poems have most recently appeared locally, nationally and overseas in a variety of print and online publications.