Louis Gallo’s most recent poem to appear here was Bad News (June 2013).
The Old Hippies
By Louis Gallo
By Louis Gallo
The old hippies
Have lost their hair, teeth, and spines.
They sit on lawn chairs in Baja
And dream of Woodstock and Altamont.
They chant peace, groovy, o wow
As they pass the joints
And listen to The Dead on refurbished
Walkmans; The Dead and “Light My Fire.”
O wow, they whisper, remembering
Flowers in the barrels of rifles;
Groovy, they cough, funneling back
To the last, like, love-in.
What happened? croak the old hippies
And Hey, don’t hog the weed.
This is some, like, bad trip.
Who bought the tickets?
Where do we get off? O wow, anyway.
Man, we are not the walruses.
Like, groovy.
Their Visas have expired.
Have lost their hair, teeth, and spines.
They sit on lawn chairs in Baja
And dream of Woodstock and Altamont.
They chant peace, groovy, o wow
As they pass the joints
And listen to The Dead on refurbished
Walkmans; The Dead and “Light My Fire.”
O wow, they whisper, remembering
Flowers in the barrels of rifles;
Groovy, they cough, funneling back
To the last, like, love-in.
What happened? croak the old hippies
And Hey, don’t hog the weed.
This is some, like, bad trip.
Who bought the tickets?
Where do we get off? O wow, anyway.
Man, we are not the walruses.
Like, groovy.
Their Visas have expired.
O Wow! Great description.
Hi Louis,
What an interesting, well-written poem. Just a note on the content, many of the folks of the era about which you wrote remain quite a bit more vital, alive and involved in the world than you might think! Most of us even have our own teeth and have expanded our vocabularies. I do, however wish I lived in Baja. Thanks for the fun!
Yes, i can definitely relate to this, but i agree with Jean, especially since my first poem was published at the age of 62. I feel that my brain is working better than ever, it’s the body that is breaking down!
Thank God, we love your brain, Bobbie.
Thanks, Jeanette, I am smiling!
Hear, hear, Bobbie! And, I LOVE your poems.