kissing a mechanical ape
DUANE LOCKE
On the side street near the discount house, I saw
a man of marriageable age kissing a mechanical ape.
Then this same man began hugging himself.
I asked, “What does this mean?”
He replied, “I refuse to destroy my emblem by reasoned discourse,”
and he continued to hug himself.
This is a strange neighborhood, I thought,
I am returning to main street where there are traditional stores.
When I arrived each stoire was having a founder’s day sale,
and I saw a thousand men in silkish suits,
each man hugging himself, and in silkish dresses
a thousand women each hugging their children.