POETRY

 

Safety Instructions

If you are sitting in an exit row & you cannot understand
this poem, or you cannot see well enough to follow
these instructions, please tell a literary critic. Poems are
heavy, awkward to lift, push, pull, & maneuver.
Because of this, & for the saftey of all
Harlold Bloom requires that we seat qualified readers
next to poems. If a poem loses pressure, an idea
will be released from the overhead compartment.
Make sure to write down the idea before
you attempt to assist others with their ideas. Once again,
thank you for reading this poem. I know you have
many choices and appreciate your choosing this one.

 

- Philip Metres

Philip is a poet, translator of Russian poetry, and a scholar currently completing a Ph.D. in English and an M.F.A. in poetry. He likes the democracy of buses.