HOW TO WRITE A GHAZAL

A cartoonist sits at his desk. He writes DEAD PEOPLE at the top of his notepad. This makes him smile. He then writes HALEY JOEL OSMENT. He thinks in his mind of a comic strip with HALEY JOEL OSMENT as his main character. IT WOULD BE A MEMOIR, he thinks. He writes: CAVE PEOPLE FROM THE FUTURE. This makes him smile again. He envisions a group of cavemen playing BOGGLE. The caption says, BEFORE THERE WAS GOOGLE.

A satirist sits at his desk. He writes TELEPHONE VAGINA at the top of his notepad. He is not sure what this means, but lets the confusion stir something like CHICKEN LO MEIN in his mind. He thinks of calling his girlfriend. He decides against it. WRITE A NEW EPISODE OF AMERICAN DAD, he thinks. GIVE UP AND SHOOT YOURSELF.

A poet observes a cartoonist and satirist. She dials a phone number. She asks for CHICKEN LO MEIN. She hangs up the phone. She writes

HALEY JOEL OSMENT
GIVE UP AND SHOOT YOURSELF

HALEY JOEL OSMENT
SAW DEAD PEOPLE
BEFORE THERE WAS GOOGLE

HALEY JOEL OSMENT
WRITE A NEW EPISODE OF AMERICAN DAD

HALEY JOEL OSMENT
BOGGLE GOOGLE

A ghazal understands a poet. It does not need an explanation. It writes itself because it needs to be written. It does not mean a lot. It could be dust. It could disappear.

The ghazal knows because it is a ghazal. It writes the poet, itself, like melancholy sits brooding Hecuba under Macbeth's amputated head:

WE RISE THIS WAY TO SHELTER THOSE WHO STILL LIE
BACKS OF LEAVES OF WET GRASS DEW OF STILLNESS LIE
OF CRAB GRASS FEELINGS FEET SUBURBIA'S DIG DITCH AND LIE
OF PLACES AND PEOPLE'S FACES meet STEAK DRIP DRIED DREAD AND LIE
POWER THE HUNGRY CABLES MAKE MACHINERY SLIP UNDER FOOT AND LIE
CALL FOR A GOVER MENT TAKE MINT DRIED JULUP MAD JUICE AT THE BOTTOM LIE
ROSE IS A HUNGRY SHAPE FOLDED OVER AND TOLD OVER AND MULLED OVER A LIE
AND BASEBALL LIKE A TWIRLING BASEBALL IN THE LIGHTS - BASEBALL IT'LL LIE
MERCURY FAST AND FURIOUS, A VIN DIESEL CUTE CUTOUT in French IS A LIE
LIKE PETE ROSE IS A SAINT THAT TURNS ON POINT TO POINT for sale IS A LIE
LIKE PETE ROSE IS A SAINT THAT TURNS ON POINT TO POINT for sale IS A LIE