FLIRTATION WALK WITH THE GREEN FAIRY*
[Katherine Anne Porter] flirted with religion but was too
intelligent
to commit. -- William H. Gass in Harper's Magazine
Oh Bill! so casual! such sprezzatura! arcibravo!
a tossed-off (it is necessary that it be tossed off)
mot juste in a frou-frou East Village bar
between the lines sniffed through fifties
and the sacramental absinthe.
"Oh, she thought about taking that opium,
but left the Mass to the masses"--
his cackling consecrative flesh, made word,
left his NYU acolytes in bowed-headed awe,
his back turned to them, the announcement
of the ultimate sacrament, his power released through
the holy water from the Swarovski carafe
and the silver absinthe spoon, his words
gone unchallenged, recorded
by some Gigadibs from Harpers or the NYRB.
And all who heard the words were filled
with the sure and certain knowledge
that no one could challenge his assumptions,
that everyone will believe that denial
is faith itself.
KTW/1-7-09
(*The Green Fairy is a nickname for absinthe)
--
Ken Wolman http://awfulrowing.wordpress.com/ http://www.petsit.com/content317832.html
---------------------------------
"All writers are hunters, and parents are the most available prey."--Francine du Plessix Gray
|