THE DEPRAVITY OF ETYMOLOGICAL SCAVENGER HUNTS



                                      I was doing the driving.
                                      Implications was the first clue
                                      written on a crumpled envelope
                                      full of thistle and dandelions.
                                      I saw the word, payed no attention
                                      to the envelopes contents.
                                      We were the first out
                                      and my partner was anxious,
                                      a stickler for propriety.
                                      Our car was soon passed by competitors
                                      dangerously on a narrow road
                                      with high hedges and ivy hues.
                                      Let’s go to a pub, rent a room
                                      enjoy the afternoon sensibly,
                                      for I have smelled the Spring lilacs
                                      and a little sweat emanating from
                                      a crevice I could never shun nor eschew.

Colin James has a book of poems, Resisting Probability, from
Sagging Meniscus Press. He lives in Massachusetts.