Issue 02

Ludwig Josef Johan

November 1, 2011 Issue 02, Issue 02 Poetry, Poetry, Translation

Translated by THOMAS EPSTEIN
Wittgenstein’s been in paradise for a while now. He’s probably delighted
Because the surrounding rustle reminds him
That the rustling that surrounds him does not speak of,
Is not an example of that which must be “shown.”
It’s agonizing, because he can’t remember some sentence.
Upsetting too, because reason is in no condition to “grasp”
The border between absorption and the knowledge of absorption. Erfassen.

Ambroise Paré

November 1, 2011 Issue 02, Issue 02 Poetry, Poetry

By SUSAN KINSOLVING
A war surgeon, he saw all losses: life being
the larger part; limbs the lesser. Legs hanging
from trees; on the field, hands disarmed.
Teeth missing; toes afloat in a bucket of blood.

Pvt. William O. Walker Recalls Walter Reed Army Hospital: Eye, Ear, & Nose Unit, 1947

November 1, 2011 Issue 02, Issue 02 Poetry, Poetry

By SUSAN KINSOLVING
Motto: We Provide Warrior Care 
The war was over. The only thing to kill was time.
And memory. Looking in a mirror, a G.I. wondered
why. Whether to laugh or cry, he had to face his
future with a new face, one that would be recomposed
with an acrylic eye, a rubber ear, a grafted nostril,
or a plastic nose. Pretend it’s camouflage, the surgeon
said. And thank the Lieutenant Colonel you’re not dead. 

The Fashion of La Folie

November 1, 2011 Issue 02, Issue 02 Poetry, Poetry

By SUSAN KINSOLVING

1754

She insisted that a gazebo, grotto, and gate be added
to the Estate. Two obelisks were next. And soon, a sham
castle was built on adjoining land. Then she planned