At the Ready

" At the Ready "

by Suzán Jiván

Performed on YouTube
as, " The Idea Escalated "

The idea escalated
as mannequins of men
stood at the ready
in rows of helmets
with a hefty preface
to a permanent perch
on unabashedly
unflattering wide angles
of taxidermied animals
In social interactions
turning out
as unsatisfactory
like tongue-in-cheek
under close scrutiny
as wax effigies
smiling blissfully
Well-known
ambivalence
as if in a stint
with perpetual
helter-skelter
in oversized
black trash bags
eager to please
like a golden
retriever
Shrunken
into a raft-
sized pallet
taken to task
as obviously
opulent
with gold-
flecked
prominence
Identifying
the "OMG"
of orthodoxy
known
intimately
as emerald
green
gradually
smoldering
all the livelong day
on a bulky frame
With quickness
and little finesse
if nothing else
as something extra
uninvested in ourselves...