Overwhelmed By Desire Poem by Charles Chaim Wax

When I first became
the union guy at Spinoza HS
I felt proud of myself
after all I’d be standing up
for the working man
against vicious and demented oppressors
so I now sat in the Teacher’s Center with Ernie Repetti
getting him ready
for his Mental Testing day
at the Board of Education.
I began, “When you walk into the room
don’t smile…”
Without warning
Ernie began to pick his nose.
“I’m talking to you.”
Her wiped a green gob snot on the couch
not an inch from my leg.
“Don’t do that
people gotta sit here.”
“Sorry, Doctor Bernstein.”
“Please, don’t call me Doctor Bernstein.”
“Reverend Bernstein? ”
“No.”
“Father Bernstein? ”
“No.”
“Well, I’m not gonna call you
His Holiness the Pope.
I ain’t that far gone yet.”
Bill Claxton said, “The man’s a nincompoop.”
”I’m the union guy, ” I said.
All the while Ernie sitting there.
Claxton continued, “The man cracked up
ate half a box of chalk
in front of the whole class
and then told Principal Lalor
he chomped the sticks for calcium
cause he felt his leg bones crumbling.”
“His wife threw him out
so of course
he felt his leg bones crumbling.”
“Why’d his wife dump him? ” asked Claxton.
“A delicate matter, ” I said
staring at Ernie
waiting for him to speak
but he was at his nose again
so I said, “Wife found out
he’s a coprophiliac.”
“Win some, lose some, ” said Claxton,
“this one you lose.”
”I’m the union guy, ” I said proudly.