pentimento

i drew it up there
on the living room wall
an indelible paint stain cartoon
bold at the time
now dated and dumb

i try to erase it
make it all go away
with primer
and gesso and glue

but no matter
how many layers I apply
it always bleeds back
to resurface

I scrub it
I scrape it
I sand it
I stain it
pentimento.

the only thing left
is to tear down the wall
that's been standing for
hundreds of years
and not only that
it's a load bearing one
so it's surely more damage
the whole house could be undone!

this recurring gesture
is haunting my present
and turning it harder than rock
and there's just as much rubble
to clear anyway now...

so hand me the hammer
it's down with that wall
with that horrible thing
that won't fade

I'll bash it to hell
and maybe this nightmare
will go away.