vincent ponka

Vincent Ponka lives in Toronto, Canada and his poetry has been published in the book Common Sky: Canadian Writers Against the War (and he was thrilled to have a poem by bill bissett on the page following his own), and in the literary magazines "Kiss Machine" and "Peter O'Toole".  He is currently a book reviewer for "Broken Pencil Magazine".

da levy's buddhist name

Last night at the Zen
Buddhist retreat I dreamt
da levy
played a few songs.
He was dressed the same
as on the album
cover from '74.
Blue polka
dot tie white jacket
tan vest.
I had the album with me and he
signed it
with his Buddhist name.
I then dreamt of telling this dream
to my sisters
when I was awoken

by the morning moktok.
Writing this (sitting
in a toilet stall) violates
my vow
of silence thus proving I am
a dreamer first
poet second, buddhist distant third.
I should have asked him

'mr.levy?
Would you rank
yourself any different?