Mad Hatters' Review - Issue 6 - Poetry by DAVID MELTZER - 'Happy Everyday Birthday,' '& Then We Vanish', 'The Young Man,' 'Deluge,' 'Don't Blame Me'

Poetry by David Meltzer

Music by Guthrie Lowe

Art by Monica Richards

Happy Everyday Birthday

Happy everyday birthday.
Being & becoming.
Happy turkey legs.
Ligaments to augment.
Legumes to subsume.
Assumptions to vaporize.
Neglect to resurrect.
Passion essential.
Nada gratis.
Liberate agitation.
Loom over loam & loons
crie de couer.
Splash w/ panache.
Dash all doubt.
Observe the Orb.
Orbit & serve.
No blame.
Certainly pain.
Mucho caliente.
Bliss essential.
Kiss ascent.
Clash descent.
Smash state of stasis.
Staus quo.
Gevalt.
Could go on
& will.

& then we vanish

& then we vanish to become the book which is our tomb.
& then we vanish not within but beyond all those photographs others
remember time with
the 'we' is of course me
here in Ragas typeface
here in sensing Death
the end of seeing
the book the page
the letter the word
easy enough
'tomb' & 'womb'
no immortal
needs the Ouija
for that ah ha
clotted by layers
of wrong fuel & foods
building death within

yes, death
yes, da'ath
yes, the dot that
hits center
to unfold
& explode

The Young Man

the young man in a khaki baseball cap is talking across the table to a
young woman whose black hair is tied back in a bun

The man assumes command of the discourse & she defers or retreats into
the unasked & unquestioned

The young man is instructing
She is reflecting in the lights of his erudition
He can see it in her eyes

Nothing will be remembered

Deluge

deluge
delusion
delerium
working to weave
everything
& nothing
into one of
Feldman's rugs

•

give me the gold that
turned to gelt that
wormed its way
into no display
beyond an instant of
puking blood loudly
into Brooklyn white
enamel toiletbowl &
dying soon afterwards

Don't Blame Me

for falling in love w/ you
your throat stuck w/
car bomb shrapnel
your last blood disturbing
out of control
on course

of course
all I did was watch

•

I can say what I say
but how do I say what I can't say?
What's unsayable?
What needs to be said?
What wants to be said?
What's up, doc?
Why say?
Why words?
Why why why?
Must be the fever.

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