7:40 P.M.

i am MORTIFIED by the fact
i can READ and REREAD your poem
your words remain CAPTIVATING
even after i WEAR THEM OUT
i ADMIRE and hang onto
simple lines that seem THREADBARE
only to EVERYBODY ELSE
imagine hearing YOUR VOICE
recite the letters that i KNOW
INSIDE and OUT
i’ve already MEMORIZED
a string of THOUGHTS
that you put NOT EVEN FIVE minutes into
and it’s obvious that THIS POEM
could NEVER have THE SAME EFFECT on YOU