let's not compare thee to a summer's day

[constantine]

on and on and on
these contrivances
this waxing poetic
ornate embellishments
rococo arabesques
curlicues, geegaws
the unbridled force of nature
you broke my heart
i remember mama
and the smoky, turbid
hours at victoria station
with leaves on asphalt
the grime permeating
into the yellow-worn
soles of my miserable feet
all that stuff
all that poetry stuff
all that literati crapola stuff
that loses its finish
from constant fondling
from incessant handling
dead poets worming their way
infecting the body
becoming verbs and adjectives
titles of new poems
referencing old poems
like growing tomatoes in a closed box
roots and vines twisting
choking themselves