it is not
when all the world is in love
when all the world is in heat
heads bent to hear the music
of one another's heartbeat
and all the trees drip posies
for tomorrow and tomorrow
to walk on, a promenade of hopefulness
and the sun and the sky smile
on the lovers, on the families
on the babies with their creaky legs
and amazed faces
i will remain the instrument
the hermit, the jester, the monastic clown
who plays the wedding march
who scatters poesies at the marchers' feet
who blesses all the nodding couples
who blesses the future's bright mystery
who looks on the promised land from the mountaintop
and turns his back on it
lest he turn into a pillar of salt
September 10-20, 1977
