Zoning Out

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ZONING OUT


"Lead me, and I will be behind you right away. And I will do my best to be as brave as I can be."

 — Telemachus to Odysseus


I’ve always liked Robin more 

than Batman, tousle-headed hero 


for those more than ready

to throw a one-two WHAM POW 


into the fight, just not prone to 

pick it. I don’t have the sight, 


you see, to scope out the bad guys 

when they walk the streets in brief-


case and sneakers, looking so much

like me. It’s less strong in some of us,


this need to know who’s behind 

the mask so long as the villains 


don’t know the need to stop running

to ask. Real dark in Gotham 


these days—I mean really, nobody's

safe—which is maybe why 


I find myself staring off so much, 

searching for a signal in the sky.

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