Issue 22 - 1992

Coe Review • Issue 22
With some difficulty,
The long hours
In the lotus position
In the freezing, Zen temple,
The cut from the master’s rod
When he broke concentration,
The longing for cottage cheese
And catsup,
And the bourbon of power.
No one thought
He could give up what he had struggled
A lifetime to get.
No one thought
This least distanced of all men
Could conquer himself,
Could conquer the world of desire,
Could see the void
In the waters of power.
The hero tries to find out how he fell in. The tourists are surprised
he isn’t Japanese and thinks he looks vaguely familiar. The hero
wants to give Richard Nixon his coat. He yells at the monks to get a
towel or blanket or something., He wants to know where they can
find a warm room. The monks don’t understand English and,
therefore, don’t answer. Richard Nixon doesn’t seem at all
concerned. He tells the hero he doesn’t know why he fell in but that
it is not important. He thanks him for the offer of the coat but says
he is not cold. Richard Nixon walks away leaving the hero upset and
the tourists troubled by the fact they can’t place him. The monks
don’t react.
Richard Nixon resumes
His walk on the twisted paths
Of Kinkakuji.
He is soon lost in contemplation
To the world and himself.
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