Iterations of the Insidious "I" by Cindy Hochman
Poetry
Iterations of the Insidious “I”
In this initial iteration it is my intention to instigate the ill-advised vertical pronoun.
In this iteration I will investigate all instances of the irascible and ill-fated vertical pronoun.
In this iteration I will try to interest you in my impish and illicit impulses.
In this iteration I will not be idle, even when I’m iffy, ill, impaired, or invisible.
In this iteration I will insist that idioms are idiosyncratic icons.
In this iteration I will invoke intriguing illusions, even if idiotic, inane, or irrational.
In this iteration I will indicate my impatience with iPhones, iPads, iPods (and their ilk).
In this iteration I will include the incantation “isn’t it ironic?”, which I just heard on iTunes.
In this iteration I’m in Iran, Ireland, India, or Idaho.
In this iteration I’m in Istanbul, Inverness, Innsbruck, or Indianapolis, Indiana.
In this iteration I’m inside my irritable ileum.
In this iteration I’m impetuously imbibing an inspiring Italian intoxicant (Salute!).
In this iteration I’m in the isolated intensity of my itinerant imagination.
In this [ibid.], and in the interim [ad infinitum] … inter alia …inter alia … inter … in …
Cindy Hochman is the founder of “100 Proof Copyediting Services,” the editor emerita of the long-running poetry journal First Literary Review-East, and the author of Telling You Everything (Unleash Press, 2022). Her newest book, I Am the Girl, is slated for publication in 2026 by Rain Mountain Press’s Cassandra Series. Cindy resides in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, where she meditates, does tai chi, and studies the Russian language.
Love this clever alliterative poem! Masterful word play and use of repetition.