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Larry Gross
Tallahassee, FL
United States
During Shang-ti's inception, his father was reading bad haiku and his mother was frightened by Edgar A. Guest peeping through the window. The product of a conflicted childhood, Shang-ti retreated to the highest point in Tallahassee (Macdonald's yellow arch) and proclaimed himself the Guru of Fast Food and Heartburn. Scrawling on the backs of Big Mac wrappers, he leaves this legacy.
drink deep the nectar
said the wise Shang-ti
but wash the cup
even the finest nectar
said the wise Shang-ti
leaves the cracked cup
even if you capture an angel
said the wise Shang-ti
fancy will provide imperfections
better an imperfect love
said the wise Shang-ti
than a perfect memory
if you remember her flaws
said the wise Shang-ti
they become yours
if your memory is weak
said the wise Shang-ti
speak loudly
if your memory is weak
said the wise Shang-ti
avoid strong drink
avoid all things
said the wise Shang-ti
stronger than your memory
a poor memory improves friends
said the wise Shang-ti
but multiplies enemies
memory complicates truth
said the wise Shang-ti
and simplifies hatred
if your truth makes enemies
said the wise Shang-ti
seek more truths
a treasured truth narrows the mind
said the wise Shang-ti
admitting others broadens it
if a whale swallows a man
said the wise Shang-ti
only the whale smiles
if a man swallows a whale
said the wise Shang-ti
neither is pleased
cracked congregations
said the wise Shang-ti
seek the sound of cracked bells
cracked bells
said the wise Shang-ti
fill cracked temples
the eye that has not cried
said the wise Shang-ti
cannot see beauty
a maiden yields but once
said the wise Shang-ti
but done well, it lasts
even the best coffee
said the wise Shang-ti
cannot choose its cup
is a woman philosophical about love
asks the wise Shang-ti
is the fish philosophical about water
I do not surpass the ancients
said the wise Shang-ti
I pursue them
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