“ A Hardening “ ...

” A Hardening “

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

A hardening stance
over glistening pasts
decades after
classified travels

passing over
scandal after scandal
grabbed by the handful
going national

with tough nuts to crack
packaged as taxicab
yellow and basic-black cans
minus the fanfare

with bursts of detail
unrelentingly bad
aggressive sexual acts
staged beyond comparison

ballots having been cast
“Voters Be Damned!”
hands jammed down pants
with little-or-no answers

found in the lab
meeting exacting standards
of exasperating logjams
under contract years in advance

being made from scratch
in manufacturing plants
that exceed capacity
becoming wary

via nerve-racked life spans
fearing failures
like high-rolling gamblers
becoming painfully aware
of “pure” chance
as tattletaled fanged
candidates advance...