The SInking of the Jefferson Memorial

32000 tons of memorial
to the man who penned the Declaration of Independence
our country’s shining moment
its climax and inception
sink slowly into the mud
as if the earth says:
your memorials have been denied
your nation is a trailer on the outskirts
of the nations that have passed before
and i am a tornado.  you haven’t been around
long enough to know how temporary your works are.
look how patiently the Incan stones sit in the clouds
and the pyramids still we think are hills, mountains;
everything is a perfect comment on itself
like dreams are their own interpretations–
the ring around the capital shifts like a hula hoop
falling around the legs of a child in slow motion
the potomac burrows through the earth
an ancient snake without concern
for structure or nations.   believe what you will:
but read the declaration of the world.