Revelation - Richard Chess Though there is no cure, he seeks one In the discussions of the rabbis, in the shade Of the eucalyptus, in the bones of St. Peter fish, In the lyrics of Arik Einstein, in Gitanes. Before sleep, uniform slumped To the ground, pen capped, letter To the prime minister sealed, he seeks a cure In the expansive dark of the desert. In the coffee house, enchanted by a folk singer. In the shade of the eucalyptus, daydreaming. Best to forget the offerings, how much oil and grain, How many calves, how many pigeons. Forget where the moon is in its cycle. When the first set ends, when the shade moves, He wills to carry the forgetting forward. He wills to practice forgetting when he laces His shoe, when he describes a recurring dream To the prisoner who has a reputation For his interpretations, when he gazes at a ship On the horizon, when he wakes to the face Facing his. This is the first time He has seen her in morning light. What is the prayer? She belongs to Christ, he remembers as he strokes Her breast. He will forget this morning, Like he forgot yesterday morning, their lying Together late on a mattress issued by the state. Though there is no cure, he seeks one Where he works, in a novel, in the kiss He receives from a rabbi of infinite patience. He forgets fringes and his friends who have stepped Outside for a smoke between sets. He forgets Which of them has lately become a pacifist, Which has purchased a ticket for the far east. He wills to practice forgetting the scent Of her hair, the taste of her tongue. Though there is no cure, he seeks one On the broken temple steps, He seeks one in the morning light Which reveals and reveals her face.