after The Conjurer by Hieronymous Bosch, 1475
No one is so much a fool as a willful fool.
Flemish proverb
Most people don’t know where to look—
they’re easy to distract. Some simple patter
can confuse their eyes and cloud their
clarity. “You see this pearl,” I say,
“so luminous,” and hold it up to gather light.
And while they look, a hand can do what hands
can do. And if something should disappear—
a ball, a purse, a trust—I tell myself
it is a fool who’s always credulous.
And in the end, it’s just another empty pocket.
Just another empty cup. Just another
empty promise in a world
with shame enough. So call it magic.
Call it theft. They’re both just rearranging.
One ends in astonishment.
The other in a hanging.
It’s plain survival, this secret art,
this instinct to deceive.
Thank God for fools, their froggish blear,
their longing to believe.
Nice.. but line arrangement is displayed little different for mobile users..
sorry about that … not sure what I can do about line arrangement for mobile users … but I appreciate that you appreciate the importance of the line!