Bob Hicok Two living wills The father has a box. And in this box is a

Bob
Hicok
Two
living
wills
The fatherhas a box. And in thisbox is a list
ofall theboxes the fatherhas. What theircontentsare.
What the name of each box is. Thereis The Box
of FallingDown and The Box of MultipleUniverses.
The listis in a language the fatherhopes to pass
to the son. A language oflookingforthe error
in the threadingof a bolt,ofkeepingthe standard
and Phillipsscrewdriversfromhavingsex.
The fatherhas writtenat thebottomof thelist,
"One day you will be readingthesewords,whichare,
One dayyou willbe readingthesewords,
and a listof everything
will revealitselfto you
as the redemptiveworkof a lifetime,and owning
a box foreverything
will help you trustthe afterlife
can be assuredthroughritual,and you will find
in each of theseboxes a piece ofwhatI feel,
and fusethesepieces in yourmind,and I will exist."
The mothersets cups on thelawn forrain or snow,
whateverthe skyis saying.She goes about the house
lookingmoonfuland placingthecups on the clock
and the back ofthe couch. The mothertellsthe son
to walk betweenthe circlesofthe cups
and hold his face above each one and be judged
bythewaters.At some point,themothers blood
turnedto feathers,the mothersthoughts
moved into her shoes, the mothers sex
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This content downloaded from 128.192.114.136 on Fri, 20 Mar 2015 15:16:38 UTC
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BOB HICOK
hung itselfon theline to be driedby thewind.
The mothers letterto the son is writtenin his sleep.
She leans to his ear and breathesthe smell
of his listening.When thereis a choice to be made,
the mothersays,make the feltchoice,the choice
closestto the color blue, the choice most
like thankingthe host afterthe meal, the choice
thatradiatesbeyond thevisiblewavelengths.
The motherremainsin the room long afternight
has set offon its sled,her fingerstouching
the cool edge of the sheet,her thoughtsmoving
overthe son like thebeads of a rosary.
This content downloaded from 128.192.114.136 on Fri, 20 Mar 2015 15:16:38 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
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