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• Kabo de Bona Espero

Kabo de Bona Espero

unu
William Shatner
made the only movie, ever,
entirely in Esperanto,
and claims
he can still speak the language,
but the dead can claim
so many things.

du
Esperanto,
the party guest
— Jeff, from work —
who, alone on the loveseat,
is silently devouring the shrimp ring.

tri
Esperanto,
earnest as an employee pep talk,
exotic as Kung Fu.

kvar
Any image a child has painted
anywhere, at any time,
in which the world is haloed
with stock characters of every race
— lemon-skinned geisha, chocolatey negro schoolboy—
holding hands, mouths O-ing in song:
this is Esperanto.
It is a golden smiling dream.
It is the anthem of misguided sincerity.

kvin
Esperanto, in Esperanto,
means “a hopeful person”.
And what hope —
a language
with all the potential of
an empty plate
at an all-you-can-eat buffet.

ses
If I could speak Esperanto
I would climb to the top
of a mountain
and hurl phrases from its peak:
“Listen up!”; “The government!”; “I love you!” —
and the words would shine down
like the gentle light from a candle
burning on the sun.

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