Two plus two should equal four
except of course for the occasional five
which lurks like a liar and even though
in every previous equation the four has stood
solid with its two walls and trunk.
A five now lures, its round belly, its half moon.
It’s possible numbers mean nothing.
Those early mathematicians, imprisoned
for blasphemy, believing what? Numbers
when addressed as language take on another body.
If you loved one why not the other. Oh those fools!
Who hunted spices in a time when coriander
was worth its weight in gold.
Salvation exists without reason.
I’m adding up why we're not together.
Two plus two equals four
except for the occasional five.