Billy Has Mind Tics by Neil Ellman

(after the painting by George Condo)

Billy Has Mind Tics

(after the painting by George Condo)

Billy has mind tics

the kind that makes his eyes go pop

when he sees a painting by Miró

or considers his own mortality

and the ever-expanding universe.

The kind that makes him fix his tie

even when he isn’t wearing one

or his brain goes blank

when he tries to remember his name

or the shape of his soul.                                  

The kind that makes him shout

obscenities at the moon   

for doing little more than laughing

at his silly jokes

and glowing when there is no need.

  

Poor Billy can’t sit still.

He lives on Adderal and Ritalin.

He doesn’t drink coffee anymore

but his hands still tremble

when he hears a spider in the dark.          

Neil Ellman is a poet from New Jersey.  He has published numerous poems, more than 1,000 of which are ekphrastic and written in response to works of modern art, in print and online journals, anthologies and chapbooks throughout the world.  He has been nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize and twice for Best of the Net.

Editors Note: This is an ekphrastic poem and based on a work of modern art.