Before I knew the Japanese
And they would come down on horses
To chop off fingers for practice with their swords,

Because I love and gladly serve this woman
must you call me degenerate and a fool?
She has something for the nicest taste

All night rooting, Hamlet squeezed loose,
a secret pinkness under the wall,
your pet piglet

I

He said goodbye for the last time in a cafe in
Saint-Paul-de-Vence, over a glass of Chablis.
She lingered over cheese and fruit before requesting

They called me to ask me if I know who you are.
But how can I? They have laid you
face downward against the coffin floor.

—one finger chiromantic exercise—

It sums our vital force and our will.
Cowards had theirs sliced and in Sparta

On a wooden platform in the center of the room
The young dancer stood, her naked feet in position:
The man would rather gaze at her white feet forever
Than ever hold them in his hands, paying her well

This morning there was another one
Looking used but not worn out
Beside the road
What do they mean

Before he died our father asked to be left
on the dining room table. It was difficult,
but we’ve learned to eat our meals around him,