27. Aaron Fogel, "337,000, December 2000"

After the zany language of Elmslie, this poem is quiet and effective. I'm not sure what it is about, but it makes a case for itself in an understated, gradual way over 4 pages.

"The bird and the leaf who resemble each other
in not staying lastingly on the tree
are not friends, are unaware of each other.
They inhabit different corners of attention."

It could be a faux-translation from the Chinese. Who knows? Although I have no idea who Fogel is, he is a poet I'm going to be investigating in the near future. This is one of my favorite poems in the book so far. 9.5.