A Day Unlike Any Other

When Rutherford B. Hayes comes to town,
Squirrels are charmed out of the eaves.
The editor breaks down and sobs.
It's a rare day. So rare we almost want it back.
But we give it to Mr. Hayes, the man
Elected by the skin of his teeth.
We honor his teeth. We wish he were king.
We live in a different world, the right world,
The world of mules and Rutherford B. Hayes.
Our inventory of beards has been replenished.
His unrecorded remarks fill the air.
It's impossible to breathe, without breathing
The ether around him. He's the world's
Slowest speaker. He addressed us yesterday,
And look here, he addresses us today.
Our township rises on his tide.
The police sleep the sleep of the innocent;
The river is sweet, the catfish mighty.

James Haug
The Gettysburg Review
Volume 19, Number 1
Spring 2006

Copyright © 2006 by The Gettysburg Review.
All rights reserved.
Reproduced by Poetry Daily with permission.

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