The Fourth Turning
Who wouldn’t jump on a plane
To Monaco, Key West, and Spain?
Hot cars! Fresh honey!
The haves have money!
Take a selfie! The Reichstag’s a’flame!
The title refers to The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy – What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny (1997). Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe describe the recurring cycle of four generations, in which crisis is the context for the emergence of each Greatest Generation.
In the limerick, the next Greatest Generation arrives in the middle of the final line, as the current Lost Generation poses for a selfie in front of the burning Reichstag.
For a discussion of the poem with poet Beth Weinstock, see the video below (https://vimeo.com/424977407). We met on May 31 for a Poetry Circle during which we read poems — finished and unfinished — to the other and then comment with encouragement and criticism.
To attend an upcoming Poetry Circle, register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUodOusrjwqHdJse_dsGT2oqcp1dTyJQM9L