Art and Craft 2018: 16

(Sonnet for) Derek Smalls

History is the outline of a cock
though spandex. A suggestion styled
and restrained by the owner. Forefather
shrouded and lying in state. Hot
inside, and dark as a photograph
remove and replaced with nothing.
When the moment arrives, no trick
of perspective will save you. Not

the point. The chrysalis never hatches;
IOUs go unpaid. Meant to impress
at a distance, through smoke
and spectacle. A string of luckless men
beat the drum. You can't handle
the truth.

after Harry Shearer's Derek Smalls