ee cummings pastiche poems

XXX pastiche: pollen


i watch butterflies sit

on flowers and pollinate until

they are satisfied- or


tired of working so hard (for

people who do not notice them)

their wings flutter still;

but- two monarchs fly

together (after sitting on milkweed

in one attitude) circling one another

and i like to imagine it is a sign of

love from something greater

like god or the universe (which 

sounds just as ridiculous to me)

admitting it like this and still

refusing to feel embarrassed 

“I will not fall in love”


the butterflies turn to look

(abandoning their work on the bush) 


but- though i don’t believe me

(a desire for the emotion steadfast) 

nothing else does either and it becomes

obvious that now i lack 

all forms of the thing, struggling to accept

who i am- i do not want a broken heart

that is the worst thing to experience

truly yet i have one now, caused 

by my own person because i run away

“i am tired of being myself” 


no one will love me if i can not

love me a truth that has grown 

repetitive and the orangebutterflies

are gone now, going


Somewhere (anywhere but here)

with promise; of 


people who notice because

they have fallen in love

more brave than me: more broken than you.


X pastiche: call you again


i call you etcetera

you used to answer


me, sleep coating words

that said you still cared

and you missed my voice


but, 

you don’t


answer my calls anymore

(and

regardless) i still dial not to 

mention leave voicemails of


etcetera call me backs etcetera you won’t

listen to anyway


i am drunk etcetera 

so i let myself call you

until i can feel sad about everything

but mostly about us 

and you don’t care anymore


or maybe etcetera you’ve learned

that i am lonely et


cetera

(and i will leave

et

    cetera, in

the morning

when i am whole Etcetera)


III pastiche: almost love


“i think i would have married you

but life doesn’t let love grow where it isn’t

right oh baby i’m yours we sang empty bottles

of beer under the bathroom sink scared me so much

i said i had to leave you drove me home after our first 

date and kissed me on our second you asked me

 when i changed my mind but how could i

tell you the truth when everything else was

so perfect your family was broken so you adored me

instead my eyes were happy a whole bunch you

said when i love you felt heavier on your tongue 

but i didn’t care but i hated your addictions to every-

thing that wasn’t me we were so good weren’t we?”


She spoke.   And drank rapidly a glass of water


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