Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Sleep, Big Baby, Sleep Your Fill

            W.H. Auden, A Lullaby


I’m an infant narcissist.
I don’t really care about anything except my own body.
I expect the worst—
worst bliss, that is—
something better than a bourbon toddy.
Infant narcissist,
just a flick of your wrist
sails the fly that catches the trout.
You expect the worst
luck but you get the best—
Walking With Nobby
(Norman O. Brown, that is)—
by Dale Pendell is on my list of most interesting books.
So why don’t I read Love’s Body?
Brown’s brain had the worst
luck, plaquing over till he lost
his sense of smell and finally had to be assisted in the potty.
I’m an infant narcissist.
I expect the worst.