I present to you an ordinary mirror–
a poem in which I will attempt
to recreate a memory before your very eyes–
a dangerous disguise
I must warn you now
don’t try this at home
I am after all only a reflection of you
The black dye leaking from my brain
is not real
merely the faint imaging of a cheap out-of-date copy machine
wet with promise
The blood leaking from my veins
is not real
merely a second-hand emotion
like the drool from my painted lips
this printer’s ink
that will run slip and sink momentarily
onto the computer screen that is my life
But first let me blindfold the mirror
in which I will seem to appear
and disappear
like dry tears that run to the sea–
that old familiar pull
like the pull of the moon
(not the moon itself mind you
just the reflection)
like the face I am about to make
another deception that requires concentration
that requires something I can only imagine
In this next stanza
with just the faint impression of these words
I will attempt to simulate
the illusion of meaning a bold expression
a river of echoes before you
a river of sighhhhhhhhhs
guaranteed to anaesthetize
not pain itself mind you
just the reflection
Remember
this is not a real poem
just the inflection
like the tears i paint
with artificial color
from artificial eyes
the artificial flowers
I throw in shallow graves–
a dangerous disguise
I must warn you again
don’t try this at home
Amazing! Loved it!