Hello, Stranger (Poetry)

Well ...
            Hello, Stranger
It’s good to see that death
don’t bother you
You look like Hell, Darlin’
but I guess that’s just the grave dust
settling through

Your eyes are dark, Poet —
have you written anything
I’d like to hear ?
You’ve lost your pen, have you?
Blame the weather — it’s a cruel
time of year

What’s that your mouth whispers —
there’s a moth fluttering
inside your head?
Well, that’s a shame, honey
but critters come and go
when you’re dead

I got you wrong — sorry!
That irritation’s an unpublished
poem’s line
keeps buzzing round — Don’t worry
I’ll pin it to some paper —
rhyme for rhyme

You’re looking beat, Stranger
Let the ladies miss you —
take a rest ...
Your funeral was gorgeous —
the world lost half its meaning
when you left