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“Come Next Spring” by Paul Bamberger
“the epochal consciousness has turned a somersault in the void”Karl Jaspersfrom: Man in Modern Timescome next spring this category will swing its gate closedyes yes we’re readybut who are they these poetswe have no ideacould they be the wicked little joke we never quite understood but laughed at anywaywe don’t believe somisdemeanors unallotted time and spacemore than thatmuch morea fight to the draw perhapsthat would be too sadcould they be a metaphor lost to an empty conclusiontoo far afieldwhy then don’t we just say they are mercy screaming down a hill after waking the bonesthe scavenging moon in chaseyou might be onto something hereand do they come back oftenyes come in spring so we are toldlooking for whatwho knowsi have heard they suffer bad mood swingswe’ll see*Paul Bamberger received an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Massachusetts Writing Program.