EX SOMES

You should hear the things I say about you
behind your back.
The lies I tell
when you’re not around
are not to be believed,
and yet somehow,
they are.

It astonishes me
over and over again
what people will swallow
when in the absence of the object
of the affair,
that whatever "facts"
I present
are deemed gospel
since no one has gainsaid.

This incredible power
to define reality
serves me well
as eyes open wide
when conceptualizing
the stories I’ve stated.
They are amazed,
but they accept
all because of your
blank slate state
and my underhanded plausibility.

They listen
and learn:
about your adventures with the poor
how you saved a burning building
what you donated to the victims
and where you took the bullet for the imam.

They are so willing to believe the best
even in one like you
they are gaping holes of ignorance
until I fill them
with the curious information of my choosing
– and then,
we’re all full of it.