Rodrigo Toscano

WRITE THE CITY

What’s the point of New York City
Or, for that matter, Calgary
Or any city on a hill
Or hidden far beneath the waves 
Any city at any time
Any city planned or dreamt of

What’s the point of males and females
What’s the rub with transportation
Movement of foodstuffs or the arts
Distribution of new pleasures
Or the same old ones, year by year
Making for a steady story

What’s the point of stock characters
Emotions bundled or spread out
Arguments over arguments
Escapes from argumentation
Fantastical propositions
Promises to extend a hand

What’s the point of scheduling things
All in tandem or at random
Through avenues, streets, and alleys
Secrets secreted forever
Or spilled onto morning pavement
Draining into holes seaward bound

What’s the point of that lingerie
That tie’s length & width, and color
Fraying from overuse or disuse
Weighing X amount per square ton
Legs, rubber, arms, cotton, eyes, steel
What point in writing the city

RODRIGO TOSCANO is a poet and dialogist based in New Orleans. He is the author of eleven books of poetry. His latest two are The Cut Point (Counterpath, 2023) and The Charm & The Dread (Fence Books, 2022). His Collapsible Poetics Theater was a National Poetry Series selection. His poetry has appeared in Best American Poetry and Best American Experimental Poetry (BAX). In 2019, he won the Edwin Markham prize for poetry from Reed Magazine.