I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.
– Prufrock
A squalid place, the land of the living.
Recently been there so I can tell.
They roll their sleeves just so,
as if arms will hang there forever,
then shoot their cuffs and check the time.
The time.
Can you stand it?
A sneaky lot, I warn you,
know when a stranger is around.
Smell it, maybe, that metallic taste
in back of the throat translates
outward to a three-foot radius.
Tell me I didn’t do like that,
toss my proud head make
filthy jokes at the body’s expense.
Immune they think, vaccinated
by bad luck all around them.
Tell me I didn’t do like that
when I lived down there among them.