shot glass
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"... brevity is the soul of wit ..."
- William Shakespeare

James B. Nicola


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The Madman

But to whom is the madman talking, then?
to the strange-faced subway train?
to the lone coat thrown on the stark park bench?
to the bags in his cart? to the rain?

–On all of these he's projected his heart
and brain to bridge the gulf
that keeps at bay the warring world:
in other words, himself . . .


–NO NO, HIS IS A ONCE NOBLE SOUL
BROKEN DOWN IN A DISTANT PAST
SO THAT NOW HE WAILS TO CAPTURE BACK
A PEACE HE'S KNOWN AND LOST . . .

They argued thus, my two wise friends,
as we tracked his misery
one afternoon, till I tested that bench
and the madman spoke–to me.