The Old Refrain Poem by Christopher Shepheard

I
Sang the old refrain —
The verses I forget —
The various
And numberless,
Too nebulous
To hang a peg
Or put a handle on.

But
The same old refrain
I too remembered,
Sang,
Again, again
And yet again —
That chorus
Unambiguous —
A simple thing
That fools can yap
And even a dog
Can whine.

Yet
The verses I forget;
And never mind
The why of them
Or even if
The burden of
Their cause was worth
A flaming toss,
Hysteria,
Never mind the dying for

No matter!
I forget

(2001)