we queue quietly just
                 here!
where?  
oh paul your villanelle
marches stylishly to the front!
war again!
but first a visit to the theatre
          & a meal of rose petals

the war is that way!
but you are thinking
       of another front
 & charge towards the chequered
             mansion
you are denied entry for a moment
but the promise of glory and a desk job
         draws the bouncers away
& you make yet another
       triumphant entry

Mark Roberts is a Sydney based poet and critic. He had a book of prose poems, Stepping Out of Line, published in 1985 and may one day publish another book. He edits the online journal Rochford Street Review (http://rochfordstreetreview.com/) and P76 Magazine (http://rochfordstreetpress.wordpress.com/p76-literary-magazine/).