In der Wildnis - In the Wilderness 29 x 29 cm - pastel by Karin Goeppert

ORIENT ESPRESSO

It’s hot and wet, water dripping

from palm leaves, thought as dull as the glint

in a water buffalo’s stupefied eye

Mekong Delta, Kandahar, Sunni Triangle

reflected therein when you are knee deep in 

one of Uncle Sam’s disasters or have just enough luck

to be smoking a joint alongside the Ganges  

while some private first-class grunt

crawls through the elephant grass

there’s always someone who’s had the runs since ’68

and could really use a shower

and some tapioca pudding too and

a little R&R, perhaps, China Beach for the grunts and Goa

for the spiritual type whose knees hurt from prolonged

meditation, and the fragrance of fabric softener

on a summer morning in Des Moines—that would be nice, too.