first published at The Rusty Truck
The Book of the Dirty Poet: by
the Dirty Poet
206 pages
Roadside Press
available for pre-order at magicaljeep.com
They say cleanliness is next to Godliness. If only things were that simple. In my experience, you get closer to the truth when you get down in the dirt. If you really get your nose in the soil, the fertile fertilizer of everyday life, then you see the light. It’s elemental. Not just hot air. Not watered down or burning away. Plant your two feet firmly on the Earth, and you will see the nature of things. The Dirty Poet does just that.
This volume is pocket size, a parody of a personal Bible, complete with gothic font on the cover. As I sat in the park reading this, pedestrians assumed I was reading the Good Book. Then they’d look over their shoulder at me when I burst out laughing at one of the anecdotes. This is a good book.
Inside are reflections, slices of life, and the resolve of a world weary traveler. Topics range from love, work, sex, music, drink, fatherhood, money, culture, America, human nature. There are short three line poems like perfectly timed jokes, like Haikus sighing in the American vernacular.
The best stories are from his work in healthcare. The Dirty Poet is a nurse on the frontlines of America, of the pandemic, and seasoned in situations of life and death. He’s probably more of a hero than he lets on. But those who know death understand there’s no use in bragging. An angel with a rye sense of humor, he brings the gospel of no nonsense.
____
Spit
kids don’t believe what they’re taught
they reject everything
as they should
because everything is wrong
there’s no justice
except random justice
so they spit out this world
until you can’t spit anymore
then you have to swallow
and that’s what you’re made of
See, philosophy and humor all in a single flash.
____
Because of his honesty, when all is said and done, he may be the Dirty Poet, but his conscience is clean.
