You never know
it a small town
just where things lie.
That silly one might
be the daughter of the
richest man in town.
That sweet quiet one
might be carving up the
neighbour to feed to the cat.
The kid you bully
might be the teacher’s pet
or the principal’s kid.
Or both.
The athletic one you praise
might be a wash out tomorrow.
The artsy one
might become the town’s
favourite son.
The know-it-all nerd
may buy out your business.
You might decide
how people in town
should behave,
and spread gossip far and wide
but be warned.
In a small town,
you never know
who is connected
to whom,
you might be the one
who burns in the inferno
of your words.
.
.
When we moved to a small town, I learned quickly that almost everyone is related to everyone else or has known them forever. The world of social media is turning the entire planet into a small town, and this becomes truer than ever! There is no anonymity on the internet. But the interconnectedness is like the yarn basket after the cats have been playing. You just never know where the strings lead.
Shawn L. Bird 
beautiful poem
Thank you. And true, too. lol
I was fortunate enough to have grown up in several small towns and learned these lessons early. I was profoundly intrigued when i moved to a large city and found the same can hold true.
In Cleveland there are many diverse ethnicities, and all seem to be interconnected in some fashion.
Then i began to find how small the world truly is when i learned that a friend of mine from Corpus Christi, Texas had an uncle who was a juvenile court judge and he happened to be the judge that decided my situation warranted my being placed into foster care.
Years later i moved back to Texas and a tragedy occurred. A funeral happened and i learned that my i knew my friends sister from back when in Cleveland when she was working there as a bartender.
The world is truly small. I could go on with stories like these. You never know who’s who, so it’s best to do what you do and be good and fair about it. I’ve learned this much.
Yup. It’s true!
I’ve always been small town, and have burned in the inferno of my words a number of times! A terrific ending. Thanks.
It can be a hard lesson!
I live in s mall town so I know this poem is true haha
🙂
I love your layout for your page. It’s really random but orderly somehow. It has a nice flow. I like this poem too because I can relate to living in a small town. I got kind of lucky though because after years of living here we all began to trust one another and come together as a little neighborhood haha. It took years but it was worth it. Also, what you wrote about not knowing who is who is definitely true. I never understood why people have to be so cruel to one another. Well, I understand why some people are. It’s normally petty reasons. It just reminds me of who I don’t want to be in life and how much I want to try to change it little by little. Sometimes all it takes is someone to show someone kindness or just a little compassion for them to break out of their bad habits towards others. It really is amazing how people rely on others to become who they are.
Just a standard WordPress theme. “Rounded” I think it’s called? (Check the bottom of the page, the name appears there)
Ok kool ! Will do. I love that WordPress allows for us to customize our own pages . It’s so flexible. It’s great finding a site that lets our creative juices flow in all different means haha
Yes, me too.
🙂
This is such a fantastic challenge–hold lightly to first impressions! And you are so correct about the interconnectedness of us all. There is a healthy respect that comes through in your words. And part of that is valuing the gift of each other and not squandering it with cheap words. i really liked this a lot, Shawn.
I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Love the poem. So true – I grew up in a small town of about 3,000.
I drove past my neighbourhood in Calgary this weekend, and studied my old tree with interest. They are all huge now!
Beautiful, were i the author i would change the last stanza (if you don’t want suggestions let me know) because my gut feeling is that inferno is the wrong word. somehow heat of judgements or something more likely to be tie to personal creation humanizes things more, inferno being somehow too big for the piece.
I enjoyed the read, thank you.
Alex
The poem reflects a tremendously loud and percussive response to mild events, like tossing a lit cigarette creates a forest fire when the wind conditions are right.
I see your inferno and raise a conflagration! LOL
😉