Susan Hawthorne # 207 poem for the tax man

this is my second poem for the tax man
twelve months ago I wrote a poem called
Business Plan for Poetry explaining
why I needed to keep my ABN
I was paid well for that poem
and hope this one has a good future too

Mexico has come up with a plan
for artists to pay their taxes in artwork
Mr Tax Commissioner this is called
forward thinking artworks not worth
much now will accrue in value
in fifty years some will be worth millions

but how can you tell? my answer
get all artists to contribute to the national
GDP as they pay in art they should also receive
a tax deduction later as the value increases
the only problem right now is only visual artists
sculptors the like are eligible for this scheme

so I have a proposal for the tax man
open your arms to poets their work
may look small and insubstantial
but think of the future children could
read these works in school magazines
they could create new works of art

such as musicals dance and theatrical
productions they could produce films
write songs and lead recitals of poetry
the entire society could be caught up
in excitement for poets and poetry
as they were thousands of years ago

who knows where the next great epic
will arise to challenge the Mahabharata
or the Djangawul Sisters or the epics of Greece
and Rome and much more imagine a world
in which poetry comes alive and once again
people thrill to memorising their tax-gathered poems