Metaphor Of A Muse
by Kenton K. Yee
The counterfeit is conceived
on 14 point stock,
sold, bought, received
in a plain envelope,
entered, dated, signed
in Bic blue.
How its front is flashed
to prove.
Truth be told,
beauty isn’t proof.
Still, the card almost achieves
lamination of truth
sequencing words like these
in fashion of a ruse.
Origin Stories – Metaphor Of A Muse
I first drafted this poem in Fall, 2021, prompted by news about the buying and selling of counterfeit proof-of-vaccination cards in response to prominent employers, like the NFL, instituting covid vaccination requirements. As I revised the poem, the “counterfeits … sold, bought, … dated, signed” became metaphors for everything from diplomas and passports to licenses and prizes. We all seem to crave validation, not just for employers and business partners, but for ourselves, so it’s no surprise that the demand for “lamination of truth” is widespread across all cultures and countries.
BIO
Kenton K. Yee most recently placed poetry in Rattle, Plume Poetry, The Threepenny Review, Constellations, Sugar House Review, Mantis, Cutthroat: A Journal of the Arts, The New Verse News, The Indianapolis Review, Berkeley Poetry Review, and Pembroke Magazine, among other journals. Kenton writes from northern California.
Facebook: @scrambled.k.eggs
INSTA: @kentonkyeepoet
TWTR: @leanpig
Gyroscope Review Spring 2023 Issue Now Available
Previous Origin Stories
April 1 – Wanda Praisner
April 2 – Howard Lieberman
April 3 – L. Shapley Bassen
April 4 – Sharon Scholl
April 5 – Stellasue Lee
April 6 – Jeanne DeLarm
April 7 – Virginia Smith
April 8 – Patricia Ware
April 9 – Mary Makofske
April 10 – Ann Wallace
April 11 – Jessica Purdy
April 12 – Lakshman Bulusu
April 13 – Kim Malinowski
April 14 – Anita Pulier
April 15 – Martha Bordwell
April 16 – Anastasia Walker
April 17 – Annette Sisson
April 18 – Shaheen Dil
April 19 – Claudia Reder
April 20 – Cathy Thwing
April 21 – Sarah Snyder
April 22 – Susan Barry-Schultz
April 23 – Laurie Kuntz
April 24 – Maryann Hurtt
April 25 – Yvonne Zipter
April 26 – Jess Parker
April 27th – Kelly Sargent
April 28th – Robbi Nester
April 29th – Laurie Rosen
April 30th – James Penha
May 1st – Oisin Breen
May 2nd – Jennifer Shomburg Kanke
May 3rd – Karen Paul Holmes
May 4th – Judy Kronenfeld
May 5th – Julie Weiss
May 6th – Nancy Botkin
May 7th – Jonathan Yungkans
May 8th – Gloria Parker
May 9th – Alfred Fournier
May 10th – Gloria Heffernan
May 11th – Carol Deering
May 12th – Alison Stone
May 13th – Annamaria Formichella
Previous NPM celebrations from Gyroscope Review
Let the Poet Speak! 2022
Promopalooza 2021
Poet of the Day 2020
Poets Read 2019
National Poetry Month Interview Series 2018
Book Links Party 2017