Verse Wisconsin 105| John L. Campbell

The Clutter Brothers

Homer and Langley saved things
in a Brown Stone pillar of litter
everything from paper to strings
rooms stuffed by odiferous clutter.

In a Brown Stone pillar of litter
magazines and newspapers stacked
rooms stuffed by odiferous clutter
floors sagged, the walls cracked.

Magazines and newspapers stacked
to the ceiling mountainous high
floors sagged, the walls cracked
useless old stuff piled to the sky.

To the ceiling mountainous high
from a ladder Homer added more
useless old stuff piled to the sky
towering eight feet off the floor.

From a ladder Homer added more
until paper stacks started to slide
towering eight feet off the floor.
Under tons of dailies Homer died.

Smothered by dailies since 1945
Homer and Langley saved things;
Langley’s brother didn’t survive
everything from paper to strings.

—John L. Campbell, Brookfield, WI

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John L. Campbell

John L. Campbell started free-lance writing for business and trade magazines in 1995. His book, Writing in Retirement, explains his evolution into fiction and poetry along with the profiles of thirteen other writers-in-retirement. His latest poetry chapbook is entitled Backstreet Voyeur.

Known as the Hermits of Harlem, Homer and Langley Collyer were New York’s greatest hoarders until one of them died under a toppling pile of newspapers.

This pantoum was a class assignment in Mariann Ritzer’s creative writing class at WCTC several years ago; I read the book about the Collyer brothers and I used that subject.