BIRDMAN OF EASYVILLE
Existence Deconstructed Able was I ere I saw Elvis.He was leading a yoga class:A room full of competitive posersEngaged in thoughtful reflectionAnd abstract introspection.Feeling no need to intercedeI sought entertainment elsewhere.On the grounds of a gypsy encampmentI gambled my fortune away.As a native-born Phoenician,I was unaccustomed to sweet confections,Yet I fell for a saber tooth dame.A woman of aboriginal design.She was a daydream intellectual,Full of sacred hearts and holy trinities,Well-versed in the language of words,With all her explicits on full display.I was playing with house moneyAnd pockets full of hope shine.I ended the midwatch a lucky sailor,Cashed in my chips with a fish monger,And decided to take in a show.On the diamond stage in Audienceville,I watched Orpheus in his underwearAs he parried insults unforgotten.His expression spoke less than a smile.It was more a menacing grimace,Teeth like tempered glassWith a baked-enamel finish.He humored all the dirty foot commoners,Muttered a few heartfelt obscenitiesAnd retired to the tomb of the unknown cynic.Not one to waste a good exit,I left my lover in the tall grassWith the chiggers and the ticks,Our feelings for each other having vanishedLike chalk art in a summer rain.I hopped a Norfolk Southern freightAnd rode it through Black Rock tunnel.Keeping my head low the entire passage.My glimpse of the future seemed fertileAs a salt marsh in a tidal plain.It was time to reconsider my options. THIS SPACE RESERVED FORWHATEVER COMES NEXT