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Onward and Onward

In 1887 the Army Benevolent Fund decided

to charge rent to veterans who cluttered

their otherwise peaceful brains. In 1423

the Indian Ocean demanded respite and

the starfish departed for a spell, vacationed

in Brittany, became the first buttons. Last year

I determined the precise weight of the animals.

They were so grateful they made me mayor.

History’s full of recipes & despair. In illustrations

it’s a tugboat and we’ll all be carried home.

My understanding’s incomplete. For instance,

these costumes are clearly stunning, but what’s

occurring underneath? No liver would call me

a friend. More importantly, the twentieth century

gave us Chevrolets. We get around. Even now,

gnawing on the future’s lip, I see workers en route

and there is nothing they’re not bound to mend.

Award-winning poet of 'The Trees The Trees'. Author of 'The Crying Book'. Published in The New Yorker, Poetry, & more. Former fellow at Emory.