A Valentine in Crayons

As the masque went on Sehnsucht was seen to change

His Nordic cowl for Milanese lozenges,

Playing the clown Fiasco. And I mean

He was funny. Butterfingers, stumblebum,

False feet in gum, bloom of the incomplete.

Given a moment more, one thought of a vase

Fallen to smithereens before having held

Queen Anne's lace or even the water for Queen Anne's lace.

And this would have made for pity; nay, it welled

In many a heart before the pink past-master

Could in a single sublime huff disperse

Those wan nosegays, white pollen on the floors

Of dressing-rooms, or turned to paste in water,

The moon face patted rigid as it dries.