under the stars and power lines

Self Help
BY BRUCE COVEY

A chicken soup for the rainbow lover’s soul.

A chicken soup for the lover of chicken soup.

A carnage of birds, a devastation.

Chicken soup for the dried-up garden—

It’s been a lousy summer sucking us dry.

Chicken soup for the grocery list.

Chicken soup for unwanted potatoes.

Chicken soup for extinct animals.

In the west, the sun sets upon chicken soup.

With or without noodles or rice or barley,

Or vegetables—canned or otherwise—

Carrots and celery or egg drop chicken soup—

Chicken eggs, of course—or the alphabet

Or chili sauce. Chicken soup for chili lovers,

For the spicy soul. Chicken butchered

& boiled specifically for your cold.

A chicken soup for the cold soul,

A chicken soup for the sole of your shoe.

A chicken soup for decision making:

Does she love me?  Or love me not?

Knots tied with chicken soup.

Chicken soup tied and sold in knots.

38 ways to tie your soup, to be tied.

Chicken soup for the protection of others.

A prayer to chicken soup, may it bring me

A winning lottery ticket. Chicken soup

For recovering alcoholics who still

Need hydration. A hydrangea’s

Chicken soup—to be loved like no other.

A chicken soup for Barry Bonds—

May he break Hank Aaron’s record.

Stick a pin in the chicken soup & bet

On its opponent. 30-Love. Match point.

A chicken soup for winners.

A chicken soup for losers.

Chicken soup for those who tie or draw.

The 60-plus occupations of soup.

Chicken for Sue, born in the year

Of the snake. The snake that ate

An alligator and died. They both died.

A chicken soup for the one who is eaten.

A chicken soup for the one who eats

Things other than chicken soup.

Transcending the bowl. A meta-bowl

Chicken soup for the transcended bowl.

Chicken soup for the transcending soup.

Chicken soup for the Marxist, steering

Away from values associated with heirarchies.

Chicken soup for the mud wrestler,

The roller derby queen. Chicken soup

For dairy queen, for the queen of hearts,

For Lady Di and the paparazzi,

For clean and dirty kings and queens.

For kiwis with wings, for the royal

Food pyramid. Chicken soup in

January, it’s so nice

To slip upon the sliding ice.