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MANYNESS AND WARMONGERING
MANYNESS AND WARMONGERING
I never understood how abundance leads to war; when
The black man got a mule in Mississippi Burning, the
Mule got killed; we covet wives, oxen and mules.
There is always a Noah’s flood, a Katrina or some long
Forgotten Antediluvian lore; Abundance, like lots or rain
Is a choking thing. We all seem to choke on manyness.
Noah watching the rain is like us watching the infinite stars
At night; we lay up trouble for ourselves; trouble comes in
Bunches. Ask a gangster what he wants; he always says more.
The Pharaoh is never content with the bricklayers quota, he
Always says, more brick with less straw. Eventually, we are
All forced to deal with less by the manyness of Noah’s rain.
Yet there is no other way to express the beauty of the night
Except for all those many stars. Suffice to say there is enough
For everyone to go around; it is never enough for some.
Some farmers pray for rain and some strawberry farmers beg
For the rain to stop; it is not that we don’t understand what is
Appropriate, we just don’t know how to stop the warmongering.
