She called me her ultimatum
as I took on the role of demiurge,
ignoring law and the heavens.
I was baited
for our American dream, an ideal
passed down and lost or ignored each generation.
For there is no dignity in death
in the here-and-now—honor
has tucked itself away in a cabinet on Ellis Isle.
Still, the heart of this machine forces blood
through placid eyes of youth
condeming them to write the future
with that dusty feather pen
who has long since lost its identity.
