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Masterwork Paintings for Tablecloths
Show appreciation for the many interesting things that life has to offer by giving an effort to be knowledgeable about them. (Note: this is not a poem about paintings in the general sense; it is only contributary via the title alone. The entire poem works on a much larger scale.)
Claude Monet's Sunrise
Masterwork Paintings for Tablecloths
Bewildered, he turns t'ward a metallic tap-
tap and winds the window drape. A brass
pipe peeps in and sways back/fro till shards
litter inside and outside. Like an Anaconda,
the golden eminence drifts closer, coughs,
and sings: [Schubert's Piano Trio No. 2 in E
Flat Major, veiled as] classical, classical,
classical, classical, classical, classical....
The crinkling sound of paper above steals
the attention. From the vent (like a Xerox),
a page slips and swing-floats its way down
till another follows. A page reads: [Sartre's
essay on Bad Faith, veiled as] word, word,
word, word, word, word, word, word....
Undraped, the void invites [an efflorescence
of day, emitting pinks 'n' purples; a zephyr
capable of curing worst-case dysphorias,
veiled as] raise the drape, raise the drape,
raise the drape, raise the drape, raise....
Disoriented, he jolts t'ward a safe haven,
slams the door, hits a switch, and inibriates
himself with the motions of a video game:
The Orcs are too strong! Resort to the last
option--retreat! retreat! retreat! retreat!....
