When arguments became absurd,
old grandpa wouldn’t say a word
but he’d lean back and feign surprise
(a doting tease with crossing eyes)
and soon he came to realize
a fact which common sense belies—
for in his silence, what they heard
was proof that he’s a wise old bird.

Ken Gosse usually writes short, rhymed, light poetry but sometimes departs from that. He was first published in First Literary Review–East in November 2016, later in The Offbeat, Pure Slush and others. He was raised in the Chicago suburbs but is now retired. He and his wife have lived in Mesa, AZ, over twenty years.