political double octet

(1/20/17)

scrub jay alights in the leafless persimmon
& the empire collapses, right to left—

this is easy to prove: one person,
face covered by blankets, sleeps on the sidewalk

as ice falls & there’s nothing left to be bought—
this metastasis of a pre-existing

condition aired on TVs through big windows—
erratic flight of five crows over Burnside


◦    ◦    ◦


robins chirped this afternoon from the hawthorn
& the empire has collapsed, left to right—

it wasn’t unexpected: one person in
blue sleeping bag cocoon, black wheelchair parked, sleeps

as wind strews microscopic glass shards down 6th
& the bus moans to terminus; there’s nothing

left to be bought & there’s too much light for stars:
this chance to be human in the moon’s shadow



Jack Hayes
© 2017