I would like to be sad about childhood
one last time then forget

but first I have to know
I can make just one thing

I could hand to god and say
here’s your light back

yes I agree it really would be better
if men did nothing more

but there are still many odes left to be written
to ordinary things

I keep staring at that nail clipper
its perfect silver surface

its immensely pleasing curve and tiny bevels

it should have cost the fortune
of a thousand emperors

but we bought it without even saying

marvelous one
like a poem
you are exactly

as useful as you need to be

(from “Poem for Hikmet”)

Author: Matthew Zapruder
Booklet, 42 pp, 7 x 5.25 in
Language: English
ISBN: 979-8-9991646-3-6
Release Date: August 19, 2025
Publisher: The Economy Press

“Matthew Zapruder has a razor eye for the remnants and revenants of modern culture.” –The New York Times

“Zapruder’s verse offers solace and an invaluable blueprint for empathy.” –Publishers Weekly

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