The Ritual Making of the President

by Alan Cohen / September 27th, 2020

What we see in
What we want from
This battle of words
Of rival visions

A rehearsal of aspiration and prejudice
Brutality and dream
Grows like morning glory
Lush and sticky

Flowers and fades
Our secret:
We who decide
Don’t, in the end, care

Who wins
What we “believe”
What happens in the world
Only a sport, a proxy

For the real conflict
Can exist only in a virtual arena
We live, prosper only in our minds
Where anything goes

Alan Cohen was a poet before beginning his career as a Primary Care MD, teacher, and manager, and has been living a full and varied life. He has been writing poems for 60 years and is beginning now to share some of his discoveries. He’s been married to Anita for 41 years, and they’ve been in Eugene, OR these past 11. Read other articles by Alan.

This article was posted on Sunday, September 27th, 2020 at 8:03am and is filed under Poetry.