I
was your pratfall hee-hee, Louisville
Slugger chivalry, tilting agave stalk
at wandering
shopping carts
All
my clumsy was premeditated, escalated
ho-ho, tit for tat, I
sang ku ku with my good arm
flailing at the
pompous, child-like
They
knelt on a brown papyrus bag
stuffed with color, a parakeet inside
lifted the
spectrum from their crawling shadow
My
totem was stitched to my shirt, the emblem
never wavering as my brothers watched me
leap from the pit,
waltzing the merchants
In
your oldest story, I remained,
rooster-crested, I let go
of your tail,
singing
Ha ha in the
garden
Feng huang,
a-doodle-doo
Until
we lunch and milkshake
phoenix-like, resurrected
on twisting knee
Until
I return on the Encanto train, I will nest
among pistachios, motley-plumed
imagine me
broad-smile
beside you,
when eternity fits your laugh
with a gray
top-hat and oversized coat
Ladmo
1928—1994
i never saw the show...i did look it up on reading this...still i am probably missing some reference...louisville slugger chivalry sounds a bit scary up front...letting go fo the tail later on, no longer following...nice rhythm regardless...
ReplyDeleteThat's the tricky part. The poem is obviously referencing the specific, an almost insider knowledge, to an Arizona kid's tv show. But, trying to open it up so that it stands on its own even without prior knowledge. Not sure how close I am with this one, but it was a fun and nostalgic trip.
DeleteI was trying to tap the archetype of the sidekick, the playful counterpunch to the straight man.
hmm...i might go with a more familiar sidekick or maybe include a line with an allusion to one more familiar so that the correlation becomes a bit more evident?
DeleteI think you're right, but so many of the comic pairs seem dated (Laurel and Hardy, Jackie Gleason and Art Carney, Abbott and Costello). There was one allusion to Quixote and Panza -- still in the sidekick archetype I think. I'll work on this one.
ReplyDeletefresh piece - fresh imagery - keep 'em coming Gila!
ReplyDeletenot familiar with him, but you draw the picture well - and that last stanza is a strong turn ~
ReplyDeletewonderful!
ReplyDeleteZQ