William Carlos Williams

OH I suppose I should

Wash the walls of my office,

Polish the rust from

My instruments and keep them

Definitely in order;

Build shelves in

The little laboratory;

Empty out the old stains,

Clean the bottles

And refill them; buy

Another lens; put

My journals on edge instead of

Letting them lie flat

In heaps—then begin

Ten years back and

Gradually

Read them to date,

Cataloguing important

Articles for ready reference.

I suppose I should

Read the new books.

If to this I added

A bill at the tailor’s

And the cleaner’s

And grew a decent beard

And cultivated a look

Of importance—

Who can tell? I might be

A credit to my Lady Happiness

And never think anything

But a white thought!