canto 72 to give the meaning of history
as one man has found it
-ezra pound
i know
that hitler was wrong but not insane
idi amin was truly crazy but amusing
in a sad and destructive sort of way
that muhammad ali was a truly humble man
and that richard nixon wasn't the onlyone
he was just the only one to get caught
and looked horrible in makeup
that love is not enough
and there isn't even enough of it
that money doesn't grow on trees
but it is made from them
both are running out
there is no art without ethics
and that sex won't solve anything
but it does make failure
far easier to tolerate
that we must learn from our victories
as well as our defeats
that democracy is not the answer
communism is not the answer
that anyone who says he has the answer
is wrong
that anyone not willing to look
is wrong as well
that sometimes the best thing
is the red wine and promise of the empty bottle
and that good deep sleep
that a perfect sunrise beats the sunset every time
that south america is frightening
and that there is hope and a future
and we are not paying enough attention
that we are in the garden
and even if there is no god
we are in the garden
and the snake is pointing the way
all of us far too anxious
to reach for that succulent fruit
Copyright© michael dennis/Pulp Press Book Publishers 1988