Did it fail because it didn’t come in first,
didn’t reach the summit, didn’t
score more, didn’t make the team?
Because its opponent falsified the vote?
Because it missed too many questions,
or fell short of orbit, meteors of steel
and astronaut-bits scorching down?
Did it fail because lead didn’t change?
Because plants withered, and the people,
with no corn or squash, sank
into the parched ground? Because
some editor said No? Because the notes,
played fortissimo, had pianissimo effect?
Because it never earned good money,
made Manager, or got a nifty badge?
Or did it fail only because it didn’t last?
We might as well say, in that case,
failed orgasm, birthday, chocolate shake.
Might as well say, failed mountain,
river, planet. Failed atom. Failed star.
Published in Cider Press Review, Volume 26, Issue 5.
Charles Harper Webb’s twelfth collection of poems, Sidebend World, was published in 2018 by the University of Pittsburgh Press. Red Hen Press published his novel Ursula Lake in spring, 2022. Recipient of grants from the Whiting and Guggenheim foundations, Webb teaches Creative Writing at California State University, Long Beach.See all items about Charles Harper Webb
