(c) 2005
I am envious of the table; the way it stands, resolute
in the north, the south, the east and west of it.
The table is rarely restless, never inching
toward the back door at sunset, never shuddering
in hesitation, so that the piled books and empty places
never shimmy to the edge and fall. The blameless table.
The ulitarian table. And I am envious of the lamp.
It doesn't seem to mind whether it pours forth light
or is left in it's own darkness. And the bookcases;
they contain all the arguments of the books and the knick-knacks
over priority placement. The paintings don't rage at the chairs
nor ignore the submissive rug covering scars in the floorboards
and bundled dust. The bed too, is satisfied
whether I make it or leave it a mess.
This whole houseful of items, unconcerned about the dimensions
of their existence, about whether they are extensions of me
or are a series of facts standing on their own.
I am envious of the table; the way it stands, resolute
in the north, the south, the east and west of it.
The table is rarely restless, never inching
toward the back door at sunset, never shuddering
in hesitation, so that the piled books and empty places
never shimmy to the edge and fall. The blameless table.
The ulitarian table. And I am envious of the lamp.
It doesn't seem to mind whether it pours forth light
or is left in it's own darkness. And the bookcases;
they contain all the arguments of the books and the knick-knacks
over priority placement. The paintings don't rage at the chairs
nor ignore the submissive rug covering scars in the floorboards
and bundled dust. The bed too, is satisfied
whether I make it or leave it a mess.
This whole houseful of items, unconcerned about the dimensions
of their existence, about whether they are extensions of me
or are a series of facts standing on their own.
(c) 1994
Vicky Carter teaches god and the 3-Rs
to second graders at Jackson Christian School in Tennessee.
Vicky Carter relentlessly raises funds
for the Soldiers' Angel Foundation
signing hundreds of cards each week.
Vicky Carter is a Funeral Director in Bakersfield.
Her dead are buried with dignity.
Vicky Carter wipes the brow of the weary
and prays for the sick.
Vicky Carter tells me that life is not difficult
for those who have no preferences.
Vicky Carter manages the Wilmington Mellon Bank
and still finds time to partner with the YMCA
Black Achiever program. In the photo
Vicky awards the honors, smiling,
and we smile with her.
Vicky Carter is the mother of a star
USC Trojan basketball player.
When I am quiet, I can hear her cheer.
In 1971, Vicky Carter changed her name to Vicky Nguyen.
Some Vicky Carter will always remain inside her.
Vicky Carter transcends race, religion, geography
and time. She is almost always female.
Vicky Carter is a quantum leap in our evolution,
an exponential growtht, an algebraic formula
I struggle to figure out. Vicky--the faster I hurry
the slower I go.
Vicky Carter is a Tissue Establishment Registration Coordinator
for the Human Tissue Staff
at the Rockville office of Blood Research and Review.
Vicky Carter oversees the Keele University Center
for applied Entomoly and Parasitology in the U.K.
I would probably be dead, if it weren't for Vicky Carter.
Some generous quality, some selflessness
motivates her to eradicate our suffering.
I believe there is a little Vicky Carter in each of us.
Vicky Carter is a Florida Real Estate Lawyer
and a Realtor in Joplin.
Vicky Carter crossed America on the wagon train.
Vicky Carter died in Portland in 1898, survived by
two sons and six granddaughters, all carrying Vicky Carter DNA.
Vicky Carter knows all there is to know
about property, about turning a house into a home,
about birth and death and the cycles of it all.
Vicky Carter is a fifteen-year old singer
of love songs in Calgary. Her talent exceeds her years.
Vicky Carter is a relay runner at the San Antonio
Community College. Her body is a temple.
Vicky Carter rides horses on the weekend all summer.
She travels in the winter. To live like Vicky Carter
is neither easy nor difficult.
Vicky Carter asked me
What benefit can be derived from distinctions and separations?
All I need can be found in vicky Carter.
Vicky Carter can be found in me.
Vicky Carter teaches god and the 3-Rs
to second graders at Jackson Christian School in Tennessee.
Vicky Carter relentlessly raises funds
for the Soldiers' Angel Foundation
signing hundreds of cards each week.
Vicky Carter is a Funeral Director in Bakersfield.
Her dead are buried with dignity.
Vicky Carter wipes the brow of the weary
and prays for the sick.
Vicky Carter tells me that life is not difficult
for those who have no preferences.
Vicky Carter manages the Wilmington Mellon Bank
and still finds time to partner with the YMCA
Black Achiever program. In the photo
Vicky awards the honors, smiling,
and we smile with her.
Vicky Carter is the mother of a star
USC Trojan basketball player.
When I am quiet, I can hear her cheer.
In 1971, Vicky Carter changed her name to Vicky Nguyen.
Some Vicky Carter will always remain inside her.
Vicky Carter transcends race, religion, geography
and time. She is almost always female.
Vicky Carter is a quantum leap in our evolution,
an exponential growtht, an algebraic formula
I struggle to figure out. Vicky--the faster I hurry
the slower I go.
Vicky Carter is a Tissue Establishment Registration Coordinator
for the Human Tissue Staff
at the Rockville office of Blood Research and Review.
Vicky Carter oversees the Keele University Center
for applied Entomoly and Parasitology in the U.K.
I would probably be dead, if it weren't for Vicky Carter.
Some generous quality, some selflessness
motivates her to eradicate our suffering.
I believe there is a little Vicky Carter in each of us.
Vicky Carter is a Florida Real Estate Lawyer
and a Realtor in Joplin.
Vicky Carter crossed America on the wagon train.
Vicky Carter died in Portland in 1898, survived by
two sons and six granddaughters, all carrying Vicky Carter DNA.
Vicky Carter knows all there is to know
about property, about turning a house into a home,
about birth and death and the cycles of it all.
Vicky Carter is a fifteen-year old singer
of love songs in Calgary. Her talent exceeds her years.
Vicky Carter is a relay runner at the San Antonio
Community College. Her body is a temple.
Vicky Carter rides horses on the weekend all summer.
She travels in the winter. To live like Vicky Carter
is neither easy nor difficult.
Vicky Carter asked me
What benefit can be derived from distinctions and separations?
All I need can be found in vicky Carter.
Vicky Carter can be found in me.
Reborn
If we can be reborn, if we can ask the form
let us not ask for this. Let us try something different.
Maybe moss, deep in timberline up the slope of Index
where only the hardiest may see and leave us.
I could be a short-tenured fern beside the pine
upon which you entice in tactile emerald plush. Let us try
something that requires the courage only to survive,
that has only the weather to forgive. Let us try
something that does not require love, as humans know it;
surreptitious negotiations that bind us like a loose button
and a fraying hole. Too rare these moments of comfort
that filigree between sporadic reminders of your affairs;
photographs stuffed under the mattress, glove box condoms,
Hotel soaps. Our hearts navigate a minefield.
If we are required to learn the lesson of love, then let us lumber
back as dogs, loyal for life, whose tails never lie.
If we can be reborn, if we can ask the form
let us not ask for this. Let us try something different.
Maybe moss, deep in timberline up the slope of Index
where only the hardiest may see and leave us.
I could be a short-tenured fern beside the pine
upon which you entice in tactile emerald plush. Let us try
something that requires the courage only to survive,
that has only the weather to forgive. Let us try
something that does not require love, as humans know it;
surreptitious negotiations that bind us like a loose button
and a fraying hole. Too rare these moments of comfort
that filigree between sporadic reminders of your affairs;
photographs stuffed under the mattress, glove box condoms,
Hotel soaps. Our hearts navigate a minefield.
If we are required to learn the lesson of love, then let us lumber
back as dogs, loyal for life, whose tails never lie.
