Salt & Pepper

January 25, 2026 Poet:‍ Brett Rickaby ‍Artwork: Salt & Pepper by Stanley Smith

Salt & Pepper

Bombs away

Here come the peppercorns

Why you always gotta stand out, pepper

Be like your good friend, salt, blend

But no, you come rolling in with your mile-long missile shadows, “ Grind me,” you say

So impertinent. So demanding.

Psheeeeeeew! Down you go

Carpet bombing the good citizens of salt flats

It’s surreal, and iconic, it’s salt-comic, it’s ionic!

Head for the hills

But there ain’t no hills left

Damn bohemians turned all the Himalayan salts into night lights and table lamps

Poor salties never stood a chance

Peckercorns rolled right over them, the dicks

It’s alright, you’re used to it

Better find yourself some nice saltine to cozy up to

But wait, what’s this now?

Ah, on call!

Let’s work together now

How easily you join forces

How eagerly you grind it out together

Down down, you rush

Meteoric

No one sees your readiness en route

No one sees your symphony

Ecstatic. Aligned. Complimentary. Contradictory. But precise.

Pow! What a punch.

Everyone takes it for granted, you been together so long

But it ain’t easy – fixing blandness

No one realizes how much effort you put forth

Lord knows pepper can be an ass from time to time

Poor salt’s tears dried up from crying long ago

But you're consistent. What a team you make.

Dinner, dinner!

Oh, the whole families here – they’ve got guests!

You're both so reliable

I’ve enjoyed watching you work

Well, go ahead, go ahead

Go on now as needed

Don’t let me hold you up

Wait!

A little picture of the two of you behind the scenes

I think I’ve captured it

Bombs away!