on ∞

[flotsson]

I mean,  
I guess I can see it.  
No end no beginning,  
like a ring, right?  
Hold on,  

but why not a ring?   
What possible middle cinch  
could an infinite series express?  
No—that's not right.  
And, 

It looks like eyes to me,  
pupiless, empty, sightless,  
and yet,  
seems like they're gawking. Egh.  
Or,  

maybe like a pair of testicles?  
An artistic rendition of labia majora?   
An ancient fertility symbol,  
perhaps,  
why not?  

Why anything at all?   
It extends no full image 
in the brain that could bear 
the brute fact of its flayed face
and,

that's a problem, see:
a sign only refers so long  
as it can symbolize, so long  
as referent and referring  
align.  

And well, no,
I guess I just don't see it.

[busker]

I like the idea. I like the much of the execution.
But the portion from Or… to ..that’s a problem belabours the point too much. I think it’s more punchy without all that padding.
Reading it from “Egh” then skipping over to “that’s a problem…” makes the poem more cohesive and impactful