transformation

poets who are present

not unavailable or distracted

slice into bottomless tables.

poets who are present

not whimpering or moaning

bawl and bellow,

fling delight at torment

to espouse and engage

inhibiting no one.

poets who are present

redirect electrons

to implode each image,

eliminating ivory tower pedantic discourse

to purge loss or destitution.

poets who are present

defend hip pristine street corner sanctuaries

revealing the innocence of unpredictability.

poets who are present

manifest our lives

not by penning clever poems

but being poems,

thus rejecting absentee poetry:

for poets who poeticize 

boundlessly

continue to rise,

to flourish,

evermore.

conceived Dec 3, 1977, St. Louis

revised January 7, 2021, Tucson