PLATO’S RETREAT by Igor Goldkind; Illustration by Rian Hughes

I want to be just like Socrates,
Grow a long beard and
Do what I please.
And be asking you allot of questions….
For a living.
I want to be just like Socrates
And not know for sure If I’m really real
or merely an altar In Plato’s temple.
I want to be just like Socrates,
And stand in the forum all day.
In the blazing sun that surrounds us,
Under the azure Athenian skies.
And philosophize,
To anyone who bothers to listen….
For a living.
I want to be just like Socrates
Corrupting my own youth in a hemlock cocktail
Every Friday night, 2, 4 1 before 7 ….
For a living.
I want to be just like Socrates,
On a Saturday night …
Asking, “hey you, at the bar”:
What is justice?
And where can I score some tonight?
After hours ..
Long after the widening sliver
Of your mind’s eternal dawn.