Low Comedy in Dark Theaters

From confessions of love: "You say my love has evaporated . . . / But I proclaim my love is a true flood . . . / a faithful geyser, / Roman fountains overflowing, / the Seven Seas in expanse, / the mighty Mississippi in strength, / the Angel Falls in height, / our tranquil pond in sincerity." to condemnations of how readily we sell our integrity to employers: "Our backs are corn stobs / Burning in the sun Under the watchful eyes / Of a frayed black crow. / I spit on ourselves." to exploring the heavy topics of science: "On the shelf . . . / is the "leave-me-alone-box" - / Bell Lab's only "useless machine" / that once turned on / is single-mindedly programmed / only to turn itself off. / Living with innate limits / as products of that rogue, selfish DNA . . . / Aren't we all . . . / desperately in search of purpose / but denied that satisfaction, / only reproducing bodies / that live to be turned off, / if lucky, in three score and ten?", from discussion of environmentalism to the history of jazz, Cliff Lewis takes us on a poetic journey that will not only lay bare our souls, but also deepen our understanding of the universe in which we make our homes.