Doug Bolling

Variation N25

 
The I is the problem
Wittgenstein said
long ago
in a fold of philosophy
warm or cold

and I agree,
always reaching out to touch and fondle
only to fail      &
come away
somewhere outside myself

once I believed what the mirror told
until it cracked one
bitter December dawn
and I was left
with shards of 
the shadow
I never was.

Doug Bolling's poetry has appeared in Juked, Indefinite Space, s/word, Poetry Pacific, Roanoke Review, and Five20ne Review, among others. He has received Pushcart and Best of the Net nominations and several awards. He lives near Chicago, having retired from college teaching.