Extra Vagrant

Burroughs advocates
elimination of all holes but one
reminiscent of a sojourn
at a leisurely pace
never forgetting to pause
occasionally upon an overlook
hovering above a mist veiled valley
love those mist veiled valleys
through which an occasional opening
in the mixed forest reveals
a path somewhat overgrown but open still
yet quiet as the land is populated
but sparsely and with modest creatures
one of which forages along the shadowy edge
love those shadowy edges
devouring a savory insect
from time until time
the essence of motion through the continuum
within whose mist veiled and shadowy edged confines
every BwO conjuncts although there are absolutely no results
of any conjunction of BwOs perceived or not perceived
except on occasions
during which atmospheres are just right
and the mixed temperate forest
love those mixed temperate forests
contains the perfect blend of maple oak fir and walnut
whose leaves especially after the first frost
turn red yellow stay green and russet
and become dry and rustle in the gentle breeze
love the rustle in those gentle breezes
and fall to the jagged edges of the simple forest path
obscured by mists and shadows
and trees along lines of sight
from the prying eyes of sojourners
and their gentle russet curiosity
but it wouldn’t matter anyway
because all is nothingness
and there are no overlooks
and there are no valleys to be veiled
nor can reports of careless travelers
actually resemble or even reassemble
anything to love
in the shadowy silence

The Parable of the Red Shift
(Lines composed after the Second Civil War)

In the ashes still glowing Americans cry
for their future ended yesterday
in the mingled red and blue blood
shed to keep the children safe
from the practice of the science that would understand the world
from the practice of the mythology that would mold the world
the libraries long since burned from the minds of the battered students.

In the ashes still glowing Americans cry
for their future ended yesterday
in the mingled red and blue blood
shed to keep marriage safe from any other
from the idea that humans can love one another regardless of categories
from the idea that humans can love one another only within ancient bounds
the wedding chapels long since burned from the hearts of scattered lovers.

In the ashes still glowing Americans cry
for their future ended yesterday
in the mingled red and blue blood
shed to bring the children home from far away
shed to keep the children fighting for freedom
in the sand and rubble that was once the Middle East
the oil long since burned from the flesh of shattered fighters.

John Marvin is a teacher who retired and subsequently earned a Ph.D. in English at SUNY Buffalo. He has poems in scores of journals, and literary criticism in Hypermedia Joyce Studies, James Joyce Quarterly, Pennsylvania English, and Worchester Review. His book, Nietzsche and Transmodernism: Art and Science Beyond the Modern in Joyce, Stevens, Pynchon, and Kubrick, awaits a publisher. To read more of John’s work, click here.