A Grammatic Monologue
Two run-on sentences careened around a line.
The Colon twins, trying to avoid fragmentation,
made a dash into a compound but collided
with an oncoming semi. Rhetorical expletives
punctuated the air. The twins, diagnosed with
acute colonitis brought on by stress, were subjected
to colonoscopies and put into induced commas.
Cognizant of the relative complexity of the case,
authorities coordinated their efforts to find
a witness who could diagram the conjunction
of the parties involved. An elderly grammar
presented herself. In the tense interrogation
that followed, some definitely agreed with her analysis;
others voiced direct and indirect objections,
until all were thrown into a subjunctive mood.
The old grammar remained comparatively passive
until an intransitive judge, in grave, accented syllables,
declared her predication to be parenthetical.
At that, she rose from her chair and loudly interjected:
“You’re all just a bunch of stupid idioms!
Someday you’ll end up in a periodic sentence.”
—first published in Free Verse, Issue #99-100
Sister Irene Zimmerman has published four books of poetry. Her poems have appeared in numerous print venues and won several awards, most recently First Prize in the Poets’ Choice category of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets Triad Contest, 2013. Her poem “Serenade” received Honorable Mention in the annual contest sponsored by The Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters and appears in the current issue of Wisconsin People and Ideas.