Snail's Poesis - Conceit One Poem by Warren Falcon

for Leonard

'to variants and …
emendations, …
Let me hear good night.' - Lorine Niedecker

'Our little secrets slink away' - Emily Dickinson


Pace,

if pace one

can, your

paces, your

spaces,

hasten slowly

as the snail

traces her

path if path

she is (she

leaves a

palimpsest) ,

or has

time

enough,

and slime

enough,

tons of it,

to sense

or not

where she

is going

going-not,

(no apparent

plot to)

got to get to

with

or without

a shell

or,

fancier, a

c a r a p a c e

or,

better,

above-whirled

parasol apace


Visualize -

she is

a question

mark,

or wears one

if she

wears

where

she is

without

doubt

or question,


and does

not question

her

trail though

questions

gradually

do naturally


arrive -


how

does she,

snail,

breathe?


if shelled, is

she sleeved

or -un to be

less encum-

bered when

being is

weight enough?


She appears to

wait.

But doesn't.

Does not think

'hesitation'

though she

(appears to)

be

comprised

greatly

of

pauses.