The Age of Reason

GOETHE

Mercy, Goethe, its sort of
unfortunate
you lived when you did.
The Age of Reason they called it
and people felt really smart
– some of them –
because they knew a few things
and thought they knew lots

Tom Paine and Tom Jefferson
thought they were pretty smart too
– smarter than God –
free to edit their own Bibles
tell others what was true
and what not

and so on, Johannn,
tough to be alive
at such a time
and be so smart
and know so little
(but you didn’t know how little)

now we know enough
to know how little we know
and envy your ignorance
except when we walk past
your statue in Chicago and see
you up there clad in
nothing but wisdom

and sat on by pigeons