Linda Johnston Muhlhausen | Can You Guess My Name? | Poets Resist

Linda Johnston Muhlhausen’s poetry and reviews have appeared in a number of publications including The Writer, Gettysburg Review, American Poetry Review and Pitt Poetry Review. She was nominated for a 2018 Pushcart Prize for a poetry book review in This Broken Shore. She recently published a novel, Elephant Mountain. Linda lives in New Jersey, where she co-hosts The River Read Reading Series and chairs the Monmouth County Fiction Writer’s Guild.

Linda Johnston Muhlhausen’s Website.

Also by Linda Johnston Muhlhausen: Elephant Mountain

Poets Resist
Edited by Jemshed Khan
May 20, 2019

Linda Johnston Muhlhausen

Can You Guess My Name?

And the Devil did grin for his darling sin … from “The Devil’s Thoughts” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge & Robert Southey It comes as a lick of long Red tongue pointed down Spurred heels in designer shoes Vaginal mouth pursed In cunning self-lingus Quick-eyed predator scores As stoat hypnotizes rabbit Small red penis rising. Bloated finger pointed up Cleaves a cloven nation Snake-oil grift, willing wills Drunk on Kool-Aid Golden fields, steel fences Yacht-bound women Waiting for savvy white boys Promises rain, brings flood. Tempts with windy tunes, Dances the gullible minions Into the downing sea, Pipes the children toward A stone chasm closing Prospects hearts for base metals, Dowsing with pointed lies Paints coal to pass for gold, Rapes earth, clouds sky, but how long Can the con divide, the flimflam fly? Vengeful pretender! Pack up your false wares, Your katzenjammer riddles. We know your name and will speak it. Like Rumpelstiltskin, rage at wiser justice, Beat your fists, tear yourself in two Rid us of your mad tarantella Leave us now to heal the future.