One Hat Is Never Enough
Brian Beatty

The broken bulb lying in the yard
didn't put out light enough for us all
to perform in genuine shadows.

We had to make do with the dim.

Bad news about the old telephone, too --
it only worked on Wednesdays,
in the wee early hours of the morning.

How wonderful that we survived?
Obviously you never met our ape.

He was hardly the generous beast you
likely imagined after seeing him
interviewed on TV.

His many demands were complicated,
his tricks so not worth the trouble.

Eventually not even fan mail calmed
him (as it had for years).

Screwing a brand-new box of bulbs
into the flowerbed next door,
we created just enough light to escape.

That's what we're doing here now
with this full-scale map of Kentucky.

1996 © 2003