Uketopia
Because of its small size, a ukulele
looks like a kid’s toy, a prank instrument,
something humorously odd, Tiny Tim
tiptoeing through the tulips, but when
I fingerpick or strum mine, there’s
no cancer, barely any distress, it feels
safe, our dog, Dewey, curled up in a ball
on the couch beside me, and my fingers
moving automatically through complicated
chord changes, sweet ripples of sound
in joyous, peaceful protest at death.
About the Author: Howie Good is a professor emeritus at SUNY New Paltz whose newest poetry book, The Dark, is available from Sacred Parasite, which will also publish his book, Akimbo, in 2025.
Image Credit: Johannes Bosschaert “Still Life with Tulips” Public domain image courtesy of Artvee
As It Ought To Be 