July 4, 2025
There was a deadline to meet;
Had everyone in Washington scrambling to beat.
There was progress to cut, the cost of poverty high!
A debt ceiling to make; the limit, the sky.
* * *
The rockets red glared and bombs bursted in air.
Giving proof on that night of a national nightmare.
Oh what can one say when dawn’s early light
Shines on a land given over to blight?
We celebrated aspirations unmet.
There’s always next year to commemorate intent.
* *. *
One step forward, two steps back,
Our democracy’s tango is becoming a trap.
Norm
