My very first poem. Back in 1987, I entered the annual poetry contest at Merrimack College … first prize: $50. I had no interest in poetry, but I needed the money. While my motives weren’t pure, my strategy was a success. (Think I spent the $50 on a couple of KISS albums.)  

I want a white shirt, 

Baggy, 
 
With buttons down the front. 
 
 
 
Pinched at the waist, 
 
It casts off shadows, 
 
Into a natural splendor of impossible angles. 
 
 
 
I want a white shirt, 
 
Clean, 
 
With an upright collar hidden by hair. 
 
 
 
Illuminating in the light, 
 
It smells like a rose, 
 
Picked by a girl in May. 
 
 
 
It takes X-ray eyes 
 
To find a real white shirt 
 
In this world of designer clothes.