I have been writing poetry for over 30 years. Only recently, during the course of the “lock Down/Stay at Home Order” mandated by the city of Philadelphia, did I decide to share what has been sitting in my notebooks for the past 30 years.
I write short-form poetry. I embrace the challenge of trying to capture an idea in as short a burst as possible. I think of my poems as a series of “Snapshots” of life. Snapshots not Movies.
On August 20, 2020, the 150th day of the Lock Down/Stay at Home Order from the city, I felt the need to do something that would help lift both my spirits and those of my friends, neighbors, and colleagues. That day I began the “150 Day Project” – a commitment to publish and share a poem each day for the next 150 days.
Below you will find an archive of the poems from my 150 Day Project. My hope is that they would bring a little light into these dark days of being isolated and alone. Enjoy them. Share them. May they inspire you. May they bring up old memories (both good and bad). May they make you look at the world in new and interesting ways.
I have started a new series of poems which I am calling, “Words of Art“. (See below) It is my intent to have this series last another 150 days. Why not?
Thank you for taking the time to read my poems.
roy.backes@gmail.com / 267-970-4963
To see all the poems from the 150 Day Project and the ongoing Words of Art series, go to roywbackes.com/poetry-archive.
Thank you for reading!
Word Ways
Word Ways - Day 60 - More, More, More
More, More, More
More, More, More
Cries the millionaire.
Just one more zero,
Six is not enough.
He says, “If I just use more robots
And less workers
I can improve my profits.
I can add another zero.
I like the look of seven zeros”.
More, More, More
Cries the millionaire.
He says, “If I just poison more water,
Crush more lives, I can
Add yet another zero to my worth.
Eight zeros looks better than seven”.
More, More, More
Yells the multi-millionaire.
He says, “If I bribe that politician,
If I pump more pollution into the air
I can add another zero to my bottom line.
Nine zeros have a very nice look to it”.
More, More, More
Screams the Billionaire.
Mine, Mine, Mine
Howls the soulless, heartless man
In search of yet another zero.
More, More, More.
Roy W. Backes
© 2026
Word Ways - Day 59 - Nothing To Say
Nothing To Say
I listen to the phone ring
I let it ring
I don’t answer
I can’t answer
I have nothing to say
I don’t need comforting
I don’t need company
I don’t need conversation
I have nothing to say
I need the quiet
I need some time alone
I need my space
I have nothing to say
I’ll get over it
I know that
I just need time
But, right now,
I have nothing to say
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 58 - Standing On Green Grass
Standing On Green Grass
Standing here on my patch
Of green grass
I look off into the distance
And see what I am sure
Is greener grass.
I pick up my bag in preparation
To walk toward that greener grass,
To a better life.
I pause, turn around, and take
One last long look
At my patch of green grass
And allow the memories to surround me.
As I turn back, ready to take
That first step
The sun has moved higher in the sky,
Revealing numerous brown patches
In the distance.
I wait for the sun to move higher
In the sky and watch
The greener grass turn grayer
And more brown by the minute.
I place my bag back on the ground,
Pause, and give thanks to my
Little patch of green grass.
Roy W. Backes
© 2026
Word Ways - Day 57 - The Cost
The Cost
His love for her came at a price.
It cost him.
It was a price he was willing to pay.
He reached into his pocket
Every day and every night
For the pleasure of being by her side.
His love for her came at a price.
It cost him.
It cost him dearly.
Every day the price seemed to go up.
His pockets were getting thin,
Nothing but loose change left.
His love for her came at a price.
A price he could no longer afford.
It cost him.
It cost him dearly.
Laying his spare change on
The nightstand table
He only asked for one thing.
Just one last kiss before she left.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 56 - Stubborn Pride
Stubborn Pride
He walked away
Thinking that the grass
Was greener out there.
It didn’t take him long to discover
That what looked like green grass
Was just a mirage.
The grass out there turned out to be
Brown and burnt by the sun.
More dirt patches and weeds
Than lush green grass.
She waited, knowing that the grass
Is never greener, no matter
How much we want it to be.
She was patient.
He was stubborn.
He walked further and further
Through weeds and brown, burnt grass.
His stubborn pride would not allow
Him to turn around.
So, she lowered herself down into the
Lush green grass
Wishing him God speed
As he wanders through the dusty
Fields, sidestepping tumbleweeds
In his search for greener grass.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 55 - No More "Hi's"
No More “Hi’s”
He unlocks the door to their to his house
And steps into a quiet world.
No one there to say “Hi” to,
No one there calling his name.
Just the quiet there to greet him
With open arms.
He pushes his way through the silence
Disturbing the still air.
He grabs a bottle.
The ice falling into the crystal glass
Sounds like plateglass shattering.
He pours a drink.
He stands surrounded by silence
Sipping his scotch
Missing the “Hi’s” and even the “Goodbyes”
That used to fill this space.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 54 - Black Eye Blues
Black Eye Blues
Being bullied blows.
Being shunned and mocked
All because you are different.
Being cornered in the playground,
The words hitting like fists.
Being pushed, being shoved,
Being beaten down
Till the tears finally come.
Tears not of fear but
Tears of frustration.
Tears of anger.
Anger that builds over time,
The pressure bubbling
Till the moment presents itself
And the fist strikes out
Connecting like a clock against
The bully’s face.
Shock and surprise put the bully
On his ass.
One more slap across the bully’s face
While he is down.
Now your words hit like fists
Leaving the bully stunned and shamed
And forced to live with the
Black eye blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 53 - Old Glory
Old Glory
She flies high above the sacred ground
Waiting for the wind to allow
Her to show her full self.
Today, in early 2026, her edges
Are seriously frayed.
The threads holding her seams
Strain to stay together.
The stripes hold tight to each other
Avoiding separation, white from red.
The stars stubbornly hold on to
Their blue background.
But Old Glory, she holds herself together.
She is not going to allow
This temporary windstorm
To tear her apart,
Rip her to pieces.
Old Glory, this strong-willed piece
Of red, white and blue fabric
Is not going to succumb to the
Chaos that is happening
Under her name.
She will hold herself together
Because, when the wind blows the hardest
Is when she flies the proudest.
Roy W. Backes
© 2026
Word Ways - Day 52 - Standing on Green Grass
Standing On Green Grass
Standing here on my patch
Of green grass
I look off into the distance
And see what I am sure
Is greener grass.
I pick up my bag in preparation
To walk toward that greener grass,
To a better life.
I pause, turn around, and take
One last long look
At my patch of green grass
And allow the memories to surround me.
As I turn back, ready to take
That first step
The sun has moved higher in the sky,
Revealing numerous brown patches
In the distance.
I wait for the sun to move higher
In the sky and watch
The greener grass turn grayer
And more brown by the minute.
I place my bag back on the ground,
Pause, and give thanks to my
Little patch of green grass.
Roy W. Backes
© 2026
Word Ways - Day 51 - Walking Into the Mist
Walking Into the Mist
As I stood by
In my small patch of sunlight
I watched them all
Slowly walk into the mist.
No horns sounding,
Just the quiet of the mist.
I watched them ever so slowly
Fade into the fog.
A fog that swirled as they
Put one foot in front of the other,
Not glancing back over their shoulders,
Just steady steps forward.
The further they walked
The softer their images became
Until, inevitably, they disappeared
Walking into the mist.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 50 - Cured By the Blues
Cured By the Blues
You know it is bad
When the thing that gets
You out of bed in the morning
Is the blues.
When the blues are the light,
When the blues are the cure.
Sometimes it gets so dark,
So black,
That the only thing to latch on to
Are the blues.
You know it is bad
When the thing that gets
You out of bed in the morning
Is the blues.
Sometimes, in order to break the fever
You need the cool, cold compress
Of the blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 49 - Shades of the Blues
Shades of the Blues
There are many shades of blue.
From powder to azure to sky
To navy to midnight.
From soft and comforting tones
To dark and menacing.
From the pastel blue of an Oxford shirt
To the midnight dark of a power suit.
The blues come in all shades,
From the powder of a nagging feeling
To the deep dark of depression.
There are many shades of the blues
That color us all.
It is often impossible to tell if it is
The soft tone of pastel
Or the deep dark of midnight
Covering someone’s soul.
Because, the blues,
They come in all shades.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 48 - Wasted Prayers
Wasted Prayers
So many wasted prayers.
Wasted on the desire for peace.
Wasted on hoping that our team wins.
Wasted on the latest victims
Of the latest mass shooting.
So many wasted prayers.
Prayers sent off into the ether
To be lost among the debris
Of man’s desire to have things
Be different.
Maybe if we prayed less
And did more, we wouldn’t
Need all these wasted prayers.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 47 - Why?
Why?
One mam
Two guns
Hundreds of bullets
Twenty-six wounded
Thirty -five dead
Sixty-one families devastated
Hundreds of family and friends
Thousands of news people
Millions of viewers
All affected
All frightened
All changed
All asking, “How?”
All asking, “Why?”
Roy W. Backes
© 2007
Word Ways - Day 46 - What Is It About the Midnight Hour?
What Is It About the Midnight Hour?
What is it about the midnight hour?
Is it because it is the end of the day?
Is it because it is the beginning of another?
Is it because it is the hour that most
Of us are sound asleep?
Is it because it is the hour when most
Hook-ups happen in bars and clubs?
Is it because it is the hour most likely
To be referenced in a song or poem?
Whatever it is about the midnight hour
It is my favorite hour.
For endings.
For beginnings
For crawling in.
For hooking up.
For writing about.
Yeah, I want to know
What is it about the midnight hour?
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 45 - The Enemy in the Bottle
The Enemy in the Bottle
The bottle used to be my friend.
The bottle used to be my comfort.
The bottle used to be my life.
Not sure exactly when it happened,
But it happened.
The bottle became my enemy.
The bottle became my misery.
The bottle began to run my life.
I yearn for the days
When the bottle made me happy.
When the bottle satisfied me.
When the bottle was all I needed.
Now the enemy is in the bottle.
Now the enemy is all around.
Now the enemy is
In every grocery store.
In every bar.
In every restaurant.
The enemy in the bottle
Is everywhere.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 44 - Zig Zag
Zig Zag
I like how you zig
When I zag.
How you push when I pull.
How you grunt when I groan.
We are a good fit
You and I.
We work together to get there,
Whenever ‘there’ is.
You and I,
This dynamic duo
Who knows how to zig
When the other zags.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 43 - Now What?
Now What?
I made it to the top.
Now what?
I look back at all those people
I stepped on to be here.
All those people I crushed.
All those people I cheated.
They lay below me like
So much debris.
I made it to the top.
To the top where there
Is no room for anyone else.
To the top where I am alone.
To the top where I have no one.
No one to lean on.
No one to talk to.
I made it to the top.
Now what?
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 42 - Heading Home Blues
Heading Home Blues
I don’t go home much anymore
Back to the city of my birth.
I left a long time ago
And only returned for weddings
And reunions.
But now, after all these many years,
I find myself only returning
To bury old friends and distant relations.
I only return to face sadness.
The memories of happier days there
Has receded, buried under
The layers of my new life.
I don’t go home much anymore,
But today I am on my way home
Once again feeling these all too familiar
Heading home blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 41 - Andy the Ant
Andy the Ant
Andy doesn’t like the dark,
Doesn’t like the underground.
Andy prefers to be above ground
In the sun, surrounded by the
Breezes provided by the wind.
He often climbs a tree
Crawling higher and higher,
Day after day.
Andy loves the view from a high branch.
A view that feeds his dream of adventure.
A view that shows him the big wide world.
A world that Andy has plans to explore.
A world where he can walk in the sun,
Enjoy the breeze of the wind
And climb a tree whenever the
Whim takes hold.
Andy is no longer going underground.
Andy is staying in the sun
Staying in the light.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 40 - There is the Door
There is the Door
That is what she said to him.
“There is the door”.
Four words. No contractions. No short cuts.
Her arm outstretched,
Her index finger long and straight
She points directly at their front door.
No doubt.
No question as to her intent.
She is not kidding.
She is not joking.
No smile hidden under her scowl.
Just anger and determination.
“There is the door”.
There is no need to add
The cliché of, “Don’t let the door
Hit you on the way out”.
That is seriously implied.
He steps toward the door,
He pauses; He looks back.
She holds her ground,
Points and waits.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 39 - That Door
That Door
I can’t go through that door.
Through that door lies the bottle.
Through that door lies the white powder.
Through that door lies the sure bet.
Through that door lies the woman.
Through that door lies destruction.
I must stay away from that door.
Too many dangerous things
Lay beyond that door.
Every day I tell myself
I can’t go through that door.
I need strength to resist the urge
To go through that door.
Unfortunately, that strength is only
Found on the other side of that door.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 38 - A Woman's Touch
A Woman’s Touch
As a confirmed bachelor
His apartment is full of
Hard edges and dull color.
Not a lot of soft corners
And fluffy pillows to be found.
It is the kind of place that
You might say needs a woman’s touch.
You know, a plush pillow here,
A colorful comforter on the bed there,
The hint of perfume in the air.
He totally agrees.
But before his apartment
Can succumb to a woman’s touch
He needs a woman to touch,
To caress,
To leave her scent in the air.
He looks forward to the day
When he has a woman
Who can leave her touch
On his dull and hard-edged world.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 37 - Let's Go for a Ride
Let’s Go for a Ride
Let’s go for a ride.
Just me and you
Just us two.
Hop into my Mini Cooper,
I know it is small but
I like to think of it as cozy.
We’ll leave the bustle
Of the city behind
And aim for the country
Where the trees of the forest
Surround us.
Where it is quiet,
Where we can hear as we
Whisper sweet nothings into
Each other’s ear.
Let’s go for a ride.
Just me and you
Just us two.
Let’s find a quiet spot in the shadows
Where it is cool,
Where we can turn up the heat
And be one with nature.
Let’s go for a ride.
Just me and you
Just us two.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 36 - I Ain't Hard to Find
I Ain’t Hard to Find
I know you know I ain’t lost.
I know you ain’t confused.
I know you know how to find me.
I ain’t hard to find.
I live in the same house
In the same neighborhood.
I drive the same car,
The same car with 120 thousand miles
Screaming from the odometer.
It’s the same color,
Only has a new dent on
The driver’s side quarter panel.
You can’t miss it.
I know you ain’t lost,
I know you’re still around.
Your pink Beetle ain’t hard to spot.
I know you know how to find me.
If only you wanted to find me.
You know I ain’t hard to find.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 35 - Where Is Everyone Going?
Where Is Everyone Going?
Two o’clock on this overcast
Saturday afternoon.
I’m driving up the highway
On my way to my friend’s house.
I’m surrounded by thousands of cars,
Some going in my direction and
Passing me way too fast,
Many going in the opposite direction.
Going where?
I know where I am going,
I’m heading north to my friend’s house.
I only take this trip a couple
Of times a year.
I’m driving north while thousands
Pass me going south.
I can’t help but wonder
At two o’clock in the afternoon
On this overcast Saturday
Where the hell is everyone going?
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 34 - Got Up This Morning and Put on the Blues
Got Up This Morning and Put on the Blues
Yesterday was a hard day.
Too much news
Most of it bad.
I spent the day dealing
As best as I could.
Couldn’t wait to get home
And crawl into bed.
Once there I slept fitfully,
Never hitting the deep REM.
My mind never stopped.
With the sun shining through my window
I finally decided that it was time.
Time to face another day.
Throwing off the blanket,
Putting my feet on the floor
I manage to shower and shave
And get myself dressed.
As I am about to step out
And face the world once again,
I look in the mirror and realize
That I got up this morning and
Put on the blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 33 - Beating Me Up
Beating Me Up
Every time I touch the bottle
It smacks me…..hard.
I try to fend off the blows
But the bottle is way too shifty.
I try to resist, but my will is weak.
So, I brace myself,
I take a drink.
I try to dunk and weave,
But being only one handed,
(The other, of course, is
Holding the bottle)
The blows get through.
One blow after another
One drink after another.
My grip on the bottle’s neck
Never eases.
The more I drink
The bloodier I become
‘Cause every time I touch the bottle
The bottle beats me up.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 32 - Tree Pose
Tree Pose
As I progress through my tree pose
I marvel at the magnificent oak.
I savor the shade of the mighty maple.
I am awed by the forever evergreen.
When it is time to rest
I lean against the trunk of
The heart tree,
Under which we all reside.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 31 - You Can Say Goodbye
You Can Say Goodbye
You can say goodbye,
Just save it for the morning.
Let’s spend the night saying hello
While enjoying each other’s company.
You can say goodbye,
Just save it for the morning.
We have a lot of exploring to do
Before the sun begins to rise.
You can say goodbye,
Just save it for the morning.
Throw off the sheets in
The morning sunshine,
Have a cup of coffee,
Then you can say goodbye.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 30 - Rivers of Steel
Rivers of Steel
The Three Rivers of my hometown
Flowed with steel.
Barges filled with steel beams
Of every shape and size
Floated through the waters,
Pushed by tugs of all sizes.
These barges of beams, two, four,
Six, eight, ten or more lashed together
Heading down river, are passed
By barges filled to overflowing
With unrefined iron ore heading
Upriver to the smelters of the mills.
These mills of steel line the rivers
As far as the eye can see.
Their smokestacks spew every hour
Of every day as the steel is cooked.
The smoke often clouding the sky
And obscuring the afternoon sun.
Steel, in all its forms
Floated up and down the
Three Rivers of my hometown
On its way to somewhere.
On its way to everywhere.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 29 - Two Minus One Equals Zero
Two Minus One Equals Zero
If you look up the definition of zero,
It says,
“No quantity or number”; “Naught”.
Two minus one equals zero.
How do I figure that you ask?
For a long time, we were two.
Two people sharing this life.
One plus one.
Then she left. Leaving me alone.
Empty.
Without her I am nothing.
I am naught.
Without her I have no quantity or number.
I am zero.
I don’t exist.
So, two minus one equals zero.
This is me without her.
Zero.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 28 - Lucious Fruit
Luscious Fruit
The female body.
One of the most beautiful and sensual
Things on this earth.
So, what is it about the men
Who run certain religious sects
That makes them not want to enjoy
The sight of a woman’s body.
For example:
The Catholic Church wraps their women
In black and white habits
Allowing only the face to show.
No hair. No leg. No curves.
They also attach a veil that
Hangs down the woman’s back
To be used….who knows when.
Muslims choose to wrap their women
In hijabs that cover not only
Their hair, legs and curves
But the faces as well.
Some, on occasion only allow the eyes
To show through, as if it is a kindness
To allow the woman to see
Where she is going.
Both sects obliterate all the curves
And crevasses of the female body.
They hide the sheen of a woman’s hair.
They hide the curves of a woman’s hips.
They hide the wonder of a woman’s face.
What is it about the female body
That scares these men so much?
Is it temptation they fear?
The Lord’s Prayer does say,
“And lead us not into temptation.”
I ask, what is wrong with temptation
When it comes to the luscious fruit
Of a woman’s body?
Fruit that these men feel can’t
Or shouldn’t be picked or tasted,
Not unlike the apple in the Garden of Eden.
Yeah, well, the apple was picked
And the apple tasted juicy and luscious
Allowing Adam and Eve to enjoy
Each other’s nakedness at last.
Are these men so afraid to look at
Or even taste the apple?
They seem to forget that
If not for women and the fruit
Of their luscious bodies
Not one of them would be here.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 27 - Crawling In Crawling In I undress, Exposing my naked skin To the chill of the air. Small goosebumps cover my body As I shiver while making my way To the bed. The bed where she lays Cozy and warm under the Sheets and blankets. Her body heating up the bed As she patiently waits for me To crawl in And lay next to her lay on top of her lay inside of her. Crawling in. The best time of the day. Roy W. Backes © 2025 Word Ways - Day 26 - The Valley of the Blues
The Valley of the Blues
I’ve been climbing this mountain
For weeks, for months, for years.
My feet ache, my shoes worn thin.
My hands bloody and blistered
From clutching at roots and cracks
In the rockface looking for a handhold.
I struggle for breath as the air thins
By the foot. My head aches.
I look back at the distance I’ve covered
Feeling a sense of pride.
I look up, seeing the blue of the sky
Telling me that I am close to the summit.
I stop to rest, to drink some water,
To eat yet another Power Bar.
I gather my strength to make
This one last push to my final goal.
At last, I reach the summit.
I see other mountain tops off in the distance
Poking up through a blue misty fog
That covers the valley below.
The valley I left behind.
The valley I call the blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 25 - So Much Brown
So Much Brown
It wasn’t that long ago
That I took a drive into the mountains
And was surrounded by a
Brilliant patchwork of color,
Red, Orange, Rust, Yellow.
The beauty was breathtaking.
Today I took the same drive
Into the mountains and was
Struck by how all that color,
All that beauty has disappeared
And been replaced by numerous
Shades of brown.
Coffee, Beige, Cinnamon, Chestnut.
I found myself surrounded by
A world that had shut itself down,
Stripped itself bare
In preparation for the long hard
Winter months ahead.
A world that, not long ago, was
A patchwork of brilliant color,
But is now just
So much brown.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 24 - Sittin' at the Bar at Five Years Old
Sittin’ at the Bar at Five Years Old
Sittin’ at the bar at five years old
I breathe in the odor of stale beer
And steelworker sweat.
My grandfather sits to my left,
A shot and a beer in front of him.
Fellow steelworkers sit to my right.
Boilermakers abound.
Many stop to greet my Grandpap,
(That’s what I call him)
And lean down to say hello to me,
Showering me with their beer-stained breath
And eight hours’ worth of body odor.
I sit at the bar at five years old
Playing with my two green plastic army men
Surrounded by laughter, loud conversation,
And hard-working men and women.
Sittin’ at the bar at five years old,
Sipping my ginger ale,
I breathe deep, smile and file this
Moment away for future use.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 23 - Another Glorious Day
Another Glorious Day
Up again at 4:00am.
Wide awake.
The sky still shrouded in night,
Still black, still showing stars.
I get out of bed, brush, shower
And get myself dressed.
I head downstairs to my
Lifesaving coffee machine.
I brew a mug,
Add a little milk,
Walk out and sit on my porch
And patiently wait for the sun to rise.
I wait in joyous anticipation
Of the colorful show the sky puts on
Every morning as the sun
Approaches the horizon line.
As I sip my coffee, color slowly begins
To cover the morning skyline
Getting more beautiful by the minute
Until finally the sun peeks out
And over and officially begins
Another glorious day.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 22 - Never Got the Memo
Never Got the Memo
She stood there all alone
Leaning against the bar
Drinking her rum and Coke.
He asked the ‘Keep’ what she was drinking.
He ordered himself a scotch, rocks,
And asked him to provide her
With a new round.
She looked up and caught his eye.
He toasted her with his scotch, rocks
And she toasted back.
He gave her some space.
He gave her some time
Then wandered over to say hello.
She smiled.
They talked.
They drank.
She invited him back to her room.
After all these years working together
It seems that he never got the memo.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 21 - Where Do I Go?
Where Do I Go?
Where do I go now that you’re gone?
Every restaurant I like is full of memories.
Which one of ‘our friends’ do I
Hang out with?
The uncomfortable silences are
Too hard to handle.
Do I go to the Art Museum?
The walls are full of your favorite paintings.
Do I go to a performance?
Sitting alone is just not the same.
Where do I go now that you’re gone?
Which room do I sit in?
Every room is full of your touch,
Your odor, your things.
Where do I go now that you’re gone?
You filled my world.
Now that you are gone, it seems to me
That there is no place where you are not.
So, where do I go?
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 20 - Just Used to War
Just Used to War
He is taking a walk down the war-torn avenue.
Maybe running an errand,
Maybe just out for a stroll.
Crumbling buildings to his left,
Piles of rubble to his right.
This war seems never ending.
All his memories are war memories.
Just two blocks behind him
A rocket from the sky
Strikes a ten-story building
Ripping off and blowing out
The top three floors.
The man barely flinches at the strike.
He turns and gives the destruction
A cursory glance
And with no reaction
Just continues on his war-torn way.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 19 - Still Hungry Blues
Still Hungry Blues
We had a lovely meal.
You had the fish
I had the steak.
We both did a number on our wine.
You on your white
Me on my red.
A little desert,
Shared of course.
Then an after-dinner apéritif.
We stroll hand in hand
Along the busy thoroughfare
Till, at last, we arrive at yours.
You thank me for the lovely evening,
Even giving me a full-on kiss.
My eyes still closed,
You step away, say thank you once again
Then smile, turn and enter your door,
Leaving me alone on your front stoop
Trying to digest these still hungry blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 18 - Writing Stoned
Writing Stoned
I am stoned as I write this
So forgive me my diversions.
My plan is to explore, yet again,
A man/woman/person sitting
At their kitchen table in front of
One plate, one glass, one fork,
One knife, one spoon, one napkin.
They stare out their window
At a world that has left them behind.
The effects of the gummy just hit
Much harder than the joints
I used to smoke in my youth.
I find myself gently hallucinating
About ice cream with crushed
Oreo cookies sprinkled on top.
I go to the fridge, grab the pint,
Grab some Oreos from my family’s
Cookie jar and sit at my kitchen table.
I place the cookies on the single plate,
Move the glass, fork and knife to one side.
I crunch the cookies into the pint,
Lift the lonely spoon and dig in.
Wiping my mouth with my napkin
I look out my window
At a busy world and tonight
Don’t feel so left behind.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 17 - Letting Go of the Gorilla
Letting Go of the Gorilla
Kennywood Park.
The one and only amusement park
In the city of my youth.
Every year we had our annual
School outing to Kennywood.
Somewhere around fourth grade
At the age of nine
I won a ceramic, twelve-inch tall
Gorilla, ala King Kong.
I had managed to knock down the
Stack of metal milk bottles on one throw.
I was so proud.
I sat that ceramic gorilla
On the dresser in my bedroom
Where it sat for many years.
At thirteen years of age
I invited my neighbor and classmate,
Kathy, up to my room.
She looked around and asked me
About the ceramic gorilla.
I explained. Told her how proud I was.
Her reaction was, “Wow. That was a
Long time ago.”
Shortly after that visit
I disposed of my ceramic gorilla.
I decided that it was time
To let go of the kid inside me
And begin my journey toward
Becoming a man.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 16 - Meet Me Halfway
Meet Me Halfway
All you have to do
Is meet me halfway.
I’ll walk to there
You walk to here.
Halfway.
That’s all.
Now we’re face to face.
Now, all you have to do is lean forward
Just halfway.
I’ll lean forward halfway.
We’ll kiss. Long and lovely.
That’s all.
Now, all you have to do
Is lean your body in halfway
I’ll do the same
Till our bodies touch.
That’s all.
Now that you have met me halfway
Let’s see where we go from here.
All you have to do
Is meet me halfway
And who knows!
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 15 - Cloudy on the Beach Today
Cloudy on the Beach Today
The sun was shining.
You could tell, because there was light.
However,
The sun was not showing,
Was not glistening off the lake.
No diamond studded view this morning.
No sunshine to warm your face.
No, all we got this morning
Was a dull light, gray in tone.
If it wasn’t for my watch
I’d have no idea what time it was,
There being no sun to follow in the sky.
No, it was a dull, dreary, cloudy
Day on the beach today.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 14 - Catching the Blues
Catching the Blues
It’s like catching a cold.
You have no idea where you caught it.
Was it that doorknob?
Was it that party?
Was it that guy on the bus?
You never really know.
It’s like the blues.
You have no idea where you caught them.
Was it that goodbye?
Was it that distant memory?
Was it that aching need?
You never really know.
Catching the blues,
It’s like catching a cold.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 13 - The Minute I Stopped Looking
The Minute I Stopped Looking
I had been looking for a long time.
Every woman who entered my orbit
I studied and wondered if she
Was “The One”.
It was exhausting.
It felt desperate.
It was desperate.
One day I just decided to give it up,
To stop looking.
To stop analyzing.
I decided that I was okay
With being alone.
I liked myself and had no problem
Being with myself.
I finally relaxed.
I smiled more.
Life is funny that way,
The minute I stopped looking and relaxed
She walked through the door
And I knew, right then and there,
That I had found “The One”
Without even looking.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 12 - Trouble
Trouble
Trouble
With a capital ‘T’.
She brought passion into his life.
She brought excitement into his life.
She brought adventure into his life.
She also brought Trouble.
Trouble with a capital ‘T’
Into his life.
They never stopped.
They never looked back.
They barely looked forward.
They went where the wind blew.
Unfortunately, it often blew them
Into Trouble.
Trouble with a capital ‘T’.
The kind of Trouble that costs.
That costs your soul.
That costs your freedom.
That costs your life.
She brought a lot into his life,
But mostly what she brought
Was Trouble.
Trouble with a capital ‘T’.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 11 - The Ladder
The Ladder
I stand at the foot of this straight ladder,
Looking up, trying to see
How tall it is.
Trying to figure out how sturdy it is.
Trying to figure out if I can
Reinforce it in any way to
Keep it from falling or collapsing
Underneath me.
I shake it.
I study its feet against the earth.
I slowly step onto the lowest rung
Letting it take my weight.
I gently bounce and check my balance.
I wait.
I think.
I hold tight.
I climb to the next rung.
I wait.
I think.
I hold tight.
My journey up this ladder
Is slow.
Is scary.
Is slippery.
I climb, rung after rung
As far as I can.
As long as I can.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 10 - In My Head
In My Head
They say I spend too much
Time in my head.
In my head, where it is quiet.
Where it is peaceful.
On those rare occasions when
I step out of my head
And into the real world,
Step out into the cacophony of life,
I don’t stay long.
There is too much noise.
There is too much strife.
There is too much……
I stand there in the real world
For a few brief moments,
Take a look around me,
Take a deep breath
And happily, return to the peaceful
Quiet inside my head.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 9 - The Broken Bottle Bottle Blues
The Broken Bottle Blues
Every room in my house
Is covered in plush padded carpet,
Wall to wall.
Not a hard surface to be found.
It’s a form of insurance.
Insurance to cover the inevitable
Day when the bottle slips from my grip
And shatters on the hardwood floor,
Or the marble entranceway,
Or the ceramic tile of the bathroom.
So, just in case, I have covered
Every room with thick plush padded carpet
To avoid the inevitable
Broken bottle blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 8 - Can Someone Lend Me a Quarter?
Can Someone Lend Me a Quarter?
Can someone lend me a quarter?
Actually, make it a dollar.
A quarter doesn’t get you very far today.
A dollar doesn't get you very far either
But, I assume, it gets you four times
Further than a worthless quarter.
A quarter of a dollar used to matter
Back in the day.
Back when my grandfather would give
Me a quarter for every cigar stub
I could find by his porch.
I could make two bucks on a good Sunday
Depending on how many cigars my grandmother
Allowed him to smoke.
Today, I hope that he would
Offer me a dollar for every stub,
But he is long in his grave.
Throat cancer I believe.
Probably from all those cigars that
Filled my pockets with shiny silver
Quarters while slowly killing him
Puff after puff.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 7 - 1-800-GAMBLER
1-800-GAMBLER
Come on, lay down your money.
Bet 10 to win 20
Or bet 20 and lose 20.
Lay down that prop bet,
Work that over/under,
Pray for your parlay,
Try to beat the odds
And out spread the point spread.
Give FanDuel or DraftKings all your money
Or
Hit the casinos.
Go to Vegas, go to Reno,
Go to Atlantic City
Or just visit your local casino,
Every city has one now.
Play some Blackjack,
Play some poker, some Five Card Stud,
Some Texas Hold’em.
Feed the slots.
Bet red or black on the Roulette Table.
Roll those warm, breathed on dice
And don’t forget to play some Keno
On your way out the door.
Or
Pick your numbers for Powerball
Or Mega Millions, only odds of
290 million to one.
Play the Dailey Number,
Box, straight, 3 digit. 4 digit.
Day or night
And last but not least,
Buy yourself a Scratch-off,
$1.00, $5.00, $10.00. $20.00.
As they say, “You gotta play to win”.
Oh, by the way,
Gambling problem?
Call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 6 - Steel City Blues
Steel City Blues
It took years to bring
The blues to the ‘Burgh.
I’m not talking about
The blues clubs popping up
In the Strip District.
I’m talking about the years and years
Of mill after mill shutting down,
Laying off thousands, including
My uncles, my cousins, my friends.
Years of shutting down and
Sending the jobs to China
While thousands of steelworkers,
The backbone of Pittsburgh,
Faced an empty future.
Faced a frightening future.
Faced a dark blue future.
It took years to bring
The blues to the ‘Burgh
And decades more
For the steelworkers of Pittsburgh
To climb out from under
The Steel City Blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 5 - Running Out of Time
Running Out of Time
One step in front of the other,
Over and over again.
That is what life is.
Day after day. Year after year.
Time is always nipping at your heels.
Never letting you rest.
Never letting you stop.
Time keeps moving
Time keeps pushing
Time keeps running out.
Our time here is not infinite.
Our time will come to an end.
As I begin to see the faint glow of light
At the end of long time-tunnel
I try to slow down
I try to take my time.
But time takes me,
Moving me forward
Forcing one step in front of the other
Always reminding me
That I am running out of time.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 4 - Still Searching for the Garden
Still Searching for the Garden
They say it’s beautiful,
Magical even.
This place they call “The Garden”.
A place full of luscious fruits,
Full of flowers in bloom,
Full of trees with large canopies.
A place full of cool shadows.
A place that makes beautiful music
When the breeze blows through.
A place where you can lay down
On a bed of moss
And rest your head on a soft rock.
I keep searching for this place,
This “Garden’ they keep talking about.
This beautiful, magical place,
This Eden.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways - Day 3 - Whoa, Man
Whoa, Man
Whoa, man.
Do you understand what I am?
Do you understand my strength?
Do you understand my will?
Whoa, man.
Don’t you underestimate me!
Don't you underestimate my strength!
Don't you underestimate the power of my will!
Whoa, man.
You want me? Then you respect me.
You want me? Then you treat me right.
You want me? Then you wait for me.
Whoa, man.
You understand that I am a woman?
You understand that I am a strong woman?
You understand that I am a strong-willed woman?
Whoa, man.
Just get out of my way.
I am a woman.
Yes, I am a woman!
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways – Day 2 – Memories and Music
Memories and Music
A song came on the radio today
A song almost sixty years old,
A song from my youth.
A song that sixty years on
I was still able to sing along to
And whose lyrics I have not forgotten.
I must admit that there is
Very little from sixty years ago
That has stuck with me like the
Lyrics and melodies of my favorite songs.
There is the Lord’s Prayer, The Hail Mary
And the twelve things that the
Boy Scout law lists.
“A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly etc…..”.
Also, my first phone number,
Spalding 10852.
I couldn’t tell you the names of any of
My high school teachers
Nor the make and model of my parents’ car.
But the lyrics and melodies of the
Soundtrack of my youth? I got that!!
That I’ll never forget.
Memories and Music.
It seems to me that they
Go hand in hand.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Word Ways – Day 1 – Big Boy Blues
Big Boy Blues
Being a little kid was so much fun.
Almost no responsibilities except
For some homework every night
And a chore here and there.
Then you became a big boy
And your homework turned into a thesis,
And your chores turned into a career.
Then you find yourself
Looking for a job
Looking for a partner
Looking for a house.
There is no turning back.
The clock doesn’t turn that way.
No more little kid days,
Only big boy days.
Now you have responsibilities,
Now your homework consists of house repairs
And honey-do lists.
Now your chores fill your days
From beginning to end.
Now that you are living the big boy life
Take a deep breath
And get ready for
The big boy blues.
Roy W. Backes
© 2025
Roy W. Backes - Poetry 