Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
“And the Moonbeams Kiss the Sea”
For A.V on the Happy Occasion of Her Graduation
I hope and believe
that at Harvard still
In the springtime
of their golden youth
Lovers sit upon the
lawn’s green morning grass
Before class
and read Shelley to each other
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
At Mass the Young Again are Crowned with Mantillas
A mantilla in its elegance and lace
Frames forth the beauty of a lady’s noble face
A gentlemen steps back a courtly pace
Giving honour to his lady and her crown of grace
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
Just Making Fun of
the U.K. Daily Mail Again:
If It’s on The
InterGossip it Must be True
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
Stop Running
1 Kings 19
Stop searching. Hold still
Rest now under a broom tree
And He will find you
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
The Evil of Banality Arrests You in the Street
As Hannah Arendt did not exactly say
Handcuffs with their metallic
efficiency
Leather-holstered on polished
kinky-belts
Distinguish more a grab with their
subtle cachet
Than low-Prole zip ties in disposable
bags
The wrists of citizens handcuffed
without warrants
By an official wrist encircled
with
The gift of a Rolex from Mister
Big
Who will never countenance
the arrest of his sons
Handcuffs should click as tastefully,
you see
As the door of an unmarked
SUV
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
He Took a Photograph
of an Unauthorized Number!
“Tear him to pieces; he is a conspirator!”
-First Plebeian, Julius Caesar III.iii.28
Can I avoid death threats if I simply say
I wish Mr. Trump would go away
To a luxurious golf course there to play
And peace on him may we safely pray
Lawrence Hall
Dispatches for the Colonial Office
Bring Me the Head of Peter Rabbit
My little dog has gotten into the habit
Of dining at dusk on delicious rabbit
Last night she blitzed past me as I opened the door
And left me a gift on the bedroom floor
I blinked when I saw at the foot of the bed
With its eyes still open – a poor rabbit’s head
Luna-Dog looked up and pawed at my knee
As if to ask, “Aren’t you proud of me?”
I reminded her gently (no need to fume)
That we take our meals in the dining room
