THE SPECIAL OCCASION

In the recording of adrienne rich
at the Y
in 1968
before she began reading her second piece
you coughed
and broke the glorious silence
of the special occasion.

The spell was shattered
and the mood was lightened
and the incantation that was begun
never attained full strength
because of that bum note
at the start.

You coughed
and distracted the artist.
You coughed
and the rhythm was lost.
You coughed
and the evening changed,
ever so slightly
and the world bent and whispered
a particular way
instead of another.

All this
came from your cough
and all this
happened in ’68
and all this
was recorded
at the Y
and will be remembered
someday
in someone’s crapass poem.