In The Museum

 

by Jeff Harrison

 

 

 

 

Antarctic fidelity to

mere sequential scaffolding

in the museum

 

in the museum

fakes wake up & accept the duel

the original order of these events

is not always easy to find, still

Alexander Pushpin pays his respects to

revolving refutations, specious boulevards,

a collection of marvels buried in the ground –

in the museum

 

in the museum

prearranged words have been dispatched in

a number of books, chance them, Alex, not in

part, was it you who was leaving horses wrapped

in furs on the steps?

 

in the museum, Alex Pushpin

recalls a Mark Twain novel where

after every hymnal verse, scamps

mutter the words “under the covers”

 

in the museum the giftshop

would elsewhere

be known as the Lost & Found

 

in the museum

is where I'll finally win your heart,

Mrs. Back Money Muses!

 

in the museum, yes,

Mr. Black Honey Moses!

 

in the museum, whoa,

the Thousand-God shoulder

is forever a shining house

 

in the museum

you can see the same thing twice

 

in the museum

stands a guard who will not

let me see the Monets unless

I intone the words “ivory closing

waters hungering cheeks glow”

 

in the museum

they will set your shirtsleeves to music

 

in the museum

it’s puzzle time for everybody

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Work by Jeff Harrison has appeared in An Introduction to the Prose Poem (Firewheel Editions), The Hay(na)ku Anthology Vol. II (Meritage Press), The Chained Hay(na)ku Project (Meritage Press) and at Sentence: a Journal of Prose Poetics, Otoliths, Xerography, Moria, NOON: journal of the short poem, Dusie, MiPOesias and Big Bridge.