Standing in front of the Queen
As an American, intimate at Court
Her nation renders sovereign honors.
I copy them and say to her, “First time.”

“What was it like, for you?” I asked her.
“Not the first time. I imagine that
Must have been a thrill.
But the third time
Or the twentieth?”

The Queen tells me, “I knew there must be
A Mystery buried within it.”

I ask the Queen,
“Do you try to unravel the Mystery?
As I do while saying a prayer…”

The Queen slaps me. “Cheeky!”

“Was that a wrong question?”
I ask the Queen.

The Queen glares at me.
I do not apologize.
I was, after all, invited.

Later that day I learn
There is discussion
Whether I am to be banned from Court.

Crisis Man
upon the world
Not Degrees
but Absolutes

Hello old friends
Good bye to foes
Triumphant glee?
God only knows.