Two Poems by Gerard Sarnat

by Gerard Sarnat

Poet, aphorist or sometimes meanderist; Gerard Sarnat is widely published internationally in print and online. 

He has been nominated for the pending Science Fiction Poetry Association Dwarf Star Award, won San Francisco Poetry’s Contest, the Poetry in the Arts First Place Award plus the Dorfman Prize; and has been nominated for handfuls of Pushcarts plus Best of the Net Awards. For a list of his publications, check out: gerardsarnat.com

Gerry is a Harvard College and Medical School-trained physician who’s built and staffed clinics for the disenfranchised  as well as a Stanford professor and healthcare CEO. Currently he is devoting energy/ resources to deal with climate justice, and serves on Climate Action Now’s board. Gerry’s been married since 1969 with progeny consisting of four collections (Homeless Chronicles: From Abraham To Burning Man, Disputes, 17s, Melting the Ice King) plus three kids/ six grandsons — and is looking forward to potential future granddaughters.   

जैक द रिपर मानो या न मानो!/Jack the Ripper Believe It Or Not! in Hindi (Trigger Warning)      

-riffing off Nisha Pahuja’s 2022 documentary, To Kill A Tiger

Can you believe it?

Though India gets 

The lion’s share 

Of attention –-

With one rape

Victim every

20 seconds--

A score or so

Other nations

Have similar

Stigmatizing

Misogynistic

“Community”

Laws such as 

Totally insane

Business as usual

Marry-Your-Rapist

To punish women victims

But protect sexual predators.

Ger’s Flashback

We entered

Vigilante 

As billed

Country

Easily 

Had fun times

Indulging in

Their drugs 

Surveilled

As part of

Faustian dealio

But then bad 

Pockmarked

Men beat us

As they rape

Our old women 

Didn’t lock up

—Played with 

Gringos like

Cat ‘n bird.