'Frantic'

At the very least, a chipped
tooth will show,
but no, no extermination.
The roots
will survive. Yes,
there’ll still be a slow poke

to poke
fun at. Have some chips
with it, yes?
Sit back and enjoy the show.
Every story has its roots
buried, awaiting extermination.

But once the exterminating
begins, please, no more poking
around the bush. The roots
are often elsewhere, below chipped
dying trees, never showing
above ground. Oh, yes,

damn it! Yes!
Beautiful extermination:
What does it show?
What does it poke?
It leaves not a chip
or a single root.

Why root
for just one destroyer, yes?
Why have a chip
on your shoulder? Exterminate
or poke,
only what holds water will show.

Oh, it’ll be real horrorshow!
The unraveling of your roots!
The unrelenting pokes!
All these things arriving, yes,
on the day of the exterminators,
the day of uncashed chips.

And why showoff, yes?
It’s like knowing your roots right before an extermination,
like poking others with your knowledge, with a glass, chipped.