the shadow of a face – poem from 1996

the shadow of a face

my hands were idle
so I put them to work
and bought food to fill my belly
and paid rent to provide shelter
and was a good boy.

I rode the bus
and watched the flesh
the high school girls would flash
“Tantalus, again.” I sang to myself

I rode the bus three hours a day
playing the game so well
I forgot it was a game.

“The machine. The machine. The machine.”
My mind would hum
to remind me to forget,
to go back to sleep,
to close the eyes behind my eyes.

I played the game, and was happy
in forgetting it was a game.

Looking out the darkened bus window-
out through the shadow of my face outlined in the window
watching ghosting images of the world outside
pass through the opaque profile

the shadow looking back at you-
quick liquid looking back

the shadow of a face

penumbra

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~ by 15wattLasVegas on February 28, 2015.