Moonstruck

La Luna!

La bella Luna!

Breakfast

Smooth glossy plate


round yellow pancake


sticky brown syrup


trembling ham hand


scattered jagged shards

On Clowns

I met two clowns this morning. They confided to me that they are part of a clown ministry. That is to say they spread the teachings of the Gospels through clown antics and pantomime. I said that this was the silliest thing I’ve ever heard. With knitted brows and clown fingers, they scolded me and proclaimed that I was a savage and in need of salvation. I told the two clowns not to incite me to rage. As I said this, I raised a hand to strike one of them. They froze in terror. But in that moment, I saw their clown splendor and magnificence and realized that I could not bring myself to hurt a clown. When they regained mobility, they turned to cross the street. But as they stepped from the curb, a large truck, hurtling faster than seemed possible, ran over the clowns.

Le Faim

Le chupacabra
il mange . . .
le poulet!

For the Croc Hunter

'Twas about one year ago that Steve Irwin found the business end of a stingray. I wrote this after I heard the news.

Crikey, mate,
the devil fish got his
fifteen minutes
Maybe he hates reality shows, too
Because you were reality
But not anymore

You "sleep with the fishes"
Says Sal Tessio
you know, the guy
who wanted to kill Michael Corleone

But you made fishes seem to like
You
They really didn’t know you
But they you swam talked snorted hissed
Until we wanted to be croc hunters too
Yet not—
The teeth and stuff made us want another drink

Too bad the crocs weren’t there
to see the devil fish so soft and smooth
Smooth as—
Something that is smooth

Truth? Truthiness? Toothless?

Truth is a scruffy mountain he-goat.
You may find tufts of coarse hair
and splayed hoof prints
But the goat—
the goat is hard to see.