WHAT WOULD SISYPHUS DO?
—Buck Moon, Rohnert Park, CA
The poetry of solitaire
is the solitude of poetry,
bound by who knows what
neurological constraints.
Free Cell. Should I wait for the Queen,
replay “Sketches of Spain”?
Or, go with “A Love Supreme”?
Either way, I won’t be alone.
There are no more possible moves.
What do I want to do?
What would Sisyphus do?
Play again, of course.
Let the Deuce pass
and hold out for the Queen.
Close, but no Freudian smoking device,
which is after all, sometimes,
just a smoking device.
There is no such thing as the unconscious.
Am I counting cards, or just guessing?
The subconscious is, really,
a peripheral cognition.
Is operant conditioning the key to Free Will?
Or, do I draw the Knave of Sarcasm.
That Ten is a club, not a heart.
Close, but no hand-held explosive device,
nor metal footwear for beast of burden.
Why do I choose the eternal game
of Sisyphus
over the unbound neurological constraints
of Prometheus?
There are papers to write,
appointments to keep and rent is due.
What would Sisyphus do?
Why, play again, of course.
_________________________
—Medusa, noting that Buck Moon is the older brother of Carol Louise and Christopher Moon, whose poetry and photography have graced the Kitchen in the past. A family of artists! Spectacular!