Hayden Carruth
On Being Marginalized

That’s what the lady said. Said it right

Out, loud and clear. Said, “You’ve been mar-

Ginalized.” Well, thanks. “It’s too bad,”

She said. Oh, you bet your freakin’ elbow

It’s too bad. And what’s that I hear behind

My head? Palm fronds creaking? Is this

Friday’s footprint? A sad castaway is what

I am, looking everywhere for a bottle, not

The one with a message, but the one with a

Nice drink of cyanide. Here’s to you, lady.

So long. May you choke on that martini.

 
Found In Volume 33, No. 04
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  • Hayden Carruth
Hayden Carruth
About the Author

Hayden Carruth published twenty-nine books, the last being Toward the Distant Islands: New and Selected Poems (2006). He was editor of Poetry, poetry editor of Harper’s, and, for 20 years, an advisory editor of The Hudson Review.