Friday, November 08, 2024

FOR MARIO STEFANI

Solitudine non é esser soli

é amore gli altri inutilmente.

 

Note to self: save Venice

by throwing self in canal.

No! No such canal.

 

Bells twitchy this morning

pigeons

a pain in the ass to all.

 

And the constant unterhhuptions!

Let me drink a tea

to make everything fall into place

fail into place

step off into space

I’m afraid 

of my head

afraid of my stomach

afraid of my feet, always

looking up at me like little dogs.

 

Too many voices

too many unfamiliar dogs

too many ribbed vaults

crawling with heads!

 

My apartment: wreckage in every room

the atmosphere is cloudy, a mess

Venice is fucked:

fine.

Three cheers

for anyone

who ever thought otherwise

 

*

Detective on the scene (voice-over):

Was the suicide a suicide

or a murder-suicide wherein

from three chairs

the bodies were all enfolded

and involved

into a ball

suspended on a chain

from the ceiling

like a censer? And,

truly, what will become of Venice?

Of all of us?