A Turtle Thrown Into The River Poem by RIC BASTASA

they come to the house today
mother and son
the father who is so angry merely stays in their house
it is all about his wife filing a petition for annulment
of their 20 year-old marriage
she tells all the lies about his being happy-go-lucky
unmindful of her miseries
his drunkeness his womanizing his having no income at all
and he cries foul
that all these are not true
that he is psychologically incapacitated


the truth is
that he does not love her anymore
that she too is having an affair with an american who is financing the petition for annulment
who is now sleeping with her in their marital bed

i told him as he seeks my advice
admit all her lies and swallow all her false allegations
let her throw you away
as you too would like her to be thrown away to hell

let her throw the turtle with her two hands to the river
and then let her see how the turtle swims and sings to the comforts of its flow
the way they both want their lives to go and be free at last
from their mutual disappointments and hatred