Author: Jerry Brotherton

I am The Backyard Poet and I warn you that, not only will I ramble on about nothing but, I have been known to stand upon my soapbox and rant about things I care nothing about just to hear the sound of my own voice. I will try to force my opinion upon anyone willing to pay the slightest attention.

Good Morning America

On By Jerry BrothertonIn flash, Short Stories25 Comments

Good Morning Americans,

Just a little wake-up call for me this morning. While I was rinsing my mouth with Listerine Total Care Freshmint Anticavity Mouthwash this morning, I caught a glimpse of the back of the bottle. Under the heading ‘Active Ingredients, I saw only one thing listed; Sodium Fluoride w/v fluoride Ion. Not bad I thought, “Pretty simple and straight forward.” Being the country boy that I am, I liked that.

But wait, what’s this? Way down at the bottom of the label was another category…inactive ingredients. What the Hell does that mean? Are they Chemicals just hanging around not doing anything? If they’re inactive, why do we need them? So being the inquisitive person (nosy little bastard) I researched the rest of my morning routine. I tell you, I was as Dumbfounded as the Orange Man at a diplomatic briefing.

An American Routine,

Jump in the shower and spread a little…Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropl Bethane, Sodium Chloride, Dimethconol, Fragrance, Carbomer, Propylene Glycol, Citric acid, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Tea-dodecylbenzensulfate, Tetrasodium edta, DMDM Hydanton, PPG-9, Methylchloroisothiazolimone, Methylisothiazolimone, Mica (CI 77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891) Blue 1 (CI 42090)…into your hair and let that rest a bit while I lather up with some nice refreshing…

Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Chloride, Fragrance, Cocamide MEA, Citric Acid, Propylene Glycol, PPG-9, Tedrasodium EDTA, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Yellow 6 (ci 19140), Red 33 (CI 17200)

Remember to rinse and repeat if necessary.

Jump out of the shower and dry off, then spread some of this on your face…Stearic Acid, Triethanolamine, Isobutane, Laureth-23, Propane, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Fragrance, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, BHT and scrape it off with sharp steel blades.

Throw a little Aluminum Ziconium Tetrachlorohydrex GLY, Cyclopentasiloxane, Stearyl Alcohol, PPG-14, Butyl Ether, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Talc, PEG-8 Destearate, Fragrance, BST on your armpits.

Brush your teeth with some…Potassium nitrate, Sodium Fluoride w/v fluoride ion,

Rinse with a little bit of.. Sodium Fluoride w/v fluoride ion, Sorbitol solution, Alcohol, Poloxamer 407, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Eucalyptol, Flavor, Methyl Salicylate, Thymol, Phosphoric Acid, Sucralose, Menthol, Disodium Phosphate, FD&C Red 40, FD&C Blue 1

Don’t forget to put a little…Allantoin, Chloroxylenol, Cetyl Esters, Petrolatum, Isopropyl Palmitate, Carbomer 934, Triethanolamine, Stearyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Lanolin, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Fragrance on my crusty elbows and calloused hands.

The only thing left is to take my regiment of pills with a good ole glass of pure water…or is it?

Debra

On By Jerry BrothertonIn Poetry, Rhyming14 Comments

The world may hold other pretty faces

With fiery red hair crowning genius poll

They can come from different countries and races

But they will all pale in the light of your soul

 

Their splendor is shadowed when in your light

Their essence becomes tarnished and rusted

Because your elegance always shines bright

And It’s for your love that I’ve always lusted

 

Your grandeur comes from deep within your heart

While their beauty barely scratches their surface

Your love and mine cannot be torn apart

I often wonder what I did to deserve it

 

You took a broken child riddled with fear

Your Love enveloped me and made me whole

So even now, in these frail fading years

I still Love you more than you’ll ever know

Sunflowers

On By Jerry BrothertonIn Poetry, Rhyming14 Comments

I journeyed deep along mountain paths

Contemplating life’s complexities

By chance, a wondrous meadow did pass

Its perfume afloat a restful breeze

 

Widely I gazed yet could see no end

Swaying and moving to nature’s strain

Wildflowers surfing on summer’s wind

Their brown faces crowned in yellow reign

 

With poet’s hand I devoured the scene

But words to their song I could not lend

Yet I watched them dance upon the green

My saddened heart rose and I did mend

 

Though I could not capture the repose

With failing words I sadly moved on

My tablet filled with half-written prose

And pen eager to sing unheard songs

 

That Red-Haired Girl

On By Jerry BrothertonIn Non Fiction, Short Stories24 Comments

Every person’s destiny is created by a single point in time and we are forever tied to that event. That moment when the world starts to make sense and the pages in the book of our life, unfolds to reveal a glimpse of what will become our destiny.  Every decision we make and every action we take for the rest of our lives, will always bring us back to that exact moment. For me, October 7th, 1972 at 8:16AM was that moment.

You walked directly toward me, emerging from the early morning fog like a mystical goddess passing through the veil between heaven and earth. As I watched you float down the gravel road my heart tried desperately to escape my chest and join you; longing to intertwine with your soul. Blood rushed through my body until my head became light and my vision began to fade. I had to look away or fall to the ground.

It was that instance that marked the beginning of the end of my innocents. I knew in that moment, I would have to forfeit my youthful ways and learn to deal with the raging hormones of puberty. I understood that time and nature would force me to relinquish my body to the sometimes exciting, but usually frightening, world of a teenager. Although at the time I could not tell you so… I knew that moment marked the beginning of the rest of my life. Oh how I have love that life.

Fire and Fury

On By Jerry BrothertonIn Poetry, Rhyming19 Comments

Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com

Will we see fire

Death and pain

Fall from the fingertips

Of the insane

 

Will we get tweets

Of our own destruction

From a man whose mind

Is on permanent malfunction

 

If you’re searching for truth

You’d better not ask

The man hiding behind

His bright orange mask

 

What we do this day

Can never be undone

The ropes we let bind us

Can never be unstrung

 

And yet we will still

Praise his name

Don’t worry about it

There’s always someone else to blame