Sherry Smith Bell, Uncommon Common Raven (Artist Website)
Mixed media etching, 22 x 30 in
Because the bathtub refuses to drain—
amygdala, thalamus, pre-frontal cortex.
Because the mind undertakes what the mind undertakes,
before the undertaker takes the mind.
Because not always dangerous but so much more precarious,
how chartreuse isn’t always a color.
Because jowl rhymes with scowl—
many aesthetic chances, little synchronic time.
Because no such division as a short while ago—
in a dream my father offers apology.
Because looking out tonight for Jupiter, for Mars, I wonder what motivation?—
in pizzlo?—pabulum?—Pepperidge Farm cake, the whole paddy-noddy.
Because exists two sorts of men, my aunt muses on Tuesdays. The first sort
does not fall for love—Are those real poems or did you make them up yourself?
Because the second sort will want to know—Why poems?
I feel better with my eyes closed, potato-chip tuna-fish.
Because my shirt’s too loose, I’ve spilled cold hors d’oeuvres between my buds.
Because Crotch to waist they all boast ten inches, the seamstress quips, hems
without haw. I’ve been underwhelmed my entire life.