D.C.

D.C.

Washington was work.
Everybody worked,
For the Agency
For the Fund
For the Committee
For the Bureau
For the Report
For the Investigation
For the Inquiry
For the Regulation
For the Member
For the Official
For the Good of the Nation.
Worked
Toward the Deadline
Toward the Election
Toward the Judgment
Toward the Resolution.
Worked
All day
All night
After hours
After the paycheck
After it was futile
After everything
Had failed
They worked on.
I worked
At The Corcoran School.
Worked
With an axe,
With a chainsaw,
With a handsaw
With pneumatic chisels
With a bandsaw
Cutting wood
Cutting steel
Cutting stone
Cutting it close.
Worked
With industrial epoxy
With sharp blades
With heavy hammers
With an acetylene torch
With safety goggles
With Band-Aid’s
On every finger.
I cast bronze
And aluminum
And plaster
And caution to the winds.
I lived in
Work clothes
Work gloves
Work boots
Work schedules.
When I got done
I went home
To paint and
Worked on.
Because
Washington was work
And that’s
Where I was.