"They Dream Only of America"

 They dream only of America

To be lost among the thirteen million pillars of grass:

“This honey is delicious

Though it burns the throat.”

And hiding from darkness in barns

They can be grownups now

And the murderer’s ash tray is more easily—

The lake a lilac cube.

He holds a key in his right hand.

“Please,” he asked willingly.

He is thirty years old.

That was before

We could drive hundreds of miles

At night through dandelions.

When his headache grew worse we

Stopped at a wire filling station.

Now he cared only about signs.

Was the cigar a sign?

And what about the key?

He went slowly into the bedroom.

“I would not have broken my leg if I had not fallen

Against the living room table. What is it to be back

Beside the bed? There is nothing to do

For our liberation, except wait in the horror of it.

And I am lost without you.”

—John Ashbery from The Tennis Court Oath (© 1962, 1997, 2008 Estate of John Ashbery. All rights reserved. Used by arrangement with Georges Borchardt, Inc.)