#113 This is not an apple

It is the
most realistic
of his apples.
Slight blem-
ishes, variants
of color. Leaves
& scissor-cut
stalk. It is
what the painter
says it isn’t.

#112 Discourse on Method (1)

Having
suffered
through 17
symposia
convened
by L’Académie
Francaise
on Le Discours
de la Méthode

& fearing
he was
about to be
pushed be-
yond the
bounds of
rational
thought

Descartes
discarded
his wig
& his silk
breeches
& hose
& headed
for the
nearest
leather bar
muttering

“Who gives
a fuck what
anybody
thinks. I am
what I am.”

#111 God is no Saint

Either. It is
an absolute.

Or. It is
an absolution.

The bird
is perplexed
by the shoe
size &
is unable
to decide.

#110 Le Trait d'union

     The male                       There it
       flower                          encounters
        breaks off                   the female.
          & rises 
            to the                      Birds
              surface of             grow.
                the water.
                                            The use
of hyphens with adverbs is redundant
unless an identical adjective exists.

Late-blooming sun.

#109 The Search for the Absolute (1940)

Held
the leaf
up to the

light.
Said. In
this one leaf

the
entire tree.
Said. Is fractal.

Is
blueprint. Is
the entire forest.

#108 The Lovers

Is said. Aug-
mented by
is seen. Sur-
text. Not under
but laid upon. The
emphasizing
hand, the under-
scoring smile. What
is read into by
what goes on
around. So
are the lovers
so aware of
one another
that inflexion is
nuance? Or is
there something else
behind the cliched
blindness?

#107 La Joconde

da 
Vinc    i
would    be
pleased   that
Magritte   has
managed     to
capture    the
enigma    tic
smile    so 
well    . 

#106 The Alphabet of Revelations

Only in so far
as asemic
comes first

is the
alphabet of
revelations

arranged
alphabetically.

#105 The Two Mysteries

Ceci n’est pas
une pipe. N’est
pas ceci aussi. Only
the painting is /
what it claims
to be. Is a
painting. Is
a painting of
a pipe. Or in
this case also
a painting of
a painting of
a pipe.

#104 The Black Flag

The memories react
to basalt, the machines
remain the models
they once were.

#103 Collective Invention

She has legs &
feet. So. Instead of
lying there deprived
of breath it might
seem reasonable
to think she would
try to stand &
see if that allowed
an easier flow of
air into her gills.
Except. Pushing
herself upright is
probably impossible
when she only has
fins to do it with.