Emerald City

He's got real heart
and ain't much of a scarecrow
they said
not quite understanding
the joke
(if there was one)

And took off
to North Africa
in a storybook;
No South African surgery
could give them what he had
and deep in their chests
burned their statues with envy.

He'll be back
once he's run out of money
they said
not quite understanding
that love
is and isn't time and money

So they fell
asleep at the rudder
of the metaphysical tramp steamer
mid- metaphorical Atlantic
halfway from the Unreal City
very real when the fog clears
to the very unreal Algiers
Casablanca
Tunis
Alexandria
Marrakech
until they ran out of places
to never go
(and weren't sure
if they were still in Africa
or sub the
Sahara)

They'll be back
once they get off the ark
he said
not quite understanding
the joke
(yet sure there was one)