At the Automat

the act
of writing a poem
to a woman
i do not know
is ridiculous

to many
poetry
in and of itself
is ridiculous

that population
often includes me

especially
when i am in the act
of writing a poem

i cannot concentrate
sitting here
wanting to talk
to this woman
as she lunches peacefully
with her companions
three feet away from me

her beauty will not allow it

in a museum i could
circumambulate a sculpture
move close up
back off
hold my chin in my hand
cross my arms
contemplate peacefully

there would be no guilt
and i would not wonder
if someone looking at me
looking at a sculpture
thought i was lascivious

the sculpture would
not be uncomfortable
thinking I was lascivious

of course
my reaction to women
is lascivious

from time to time

it happens

in this instance
it's not the case

it's more like wonder

this whole line of thought
is ridiculous

so i write a poem