This is what I'm working on.
I'm working on exercises in definition.
One of my friends who's a composer
says, I'm cutting to the bone.
Poetry cut to the bone.
Well, I seem to be tidy with everything
except where I put my poetry that I'm working on.
But I gathered a number of these definitions
and put them together so I can read them one after the other.
And I'll tell you right now that Jack's favorite one
and another one he goes telling everybody and the one I
tell you this in advance so you can preview [INAUDIBLE] the one
on time.
And the reason he is so particularly
interested in this one on time is because-- well, he's
a scientist.
And he was some years ago the first civilian
to head Oak Ridge.
He's a physicist and expert in nuclear power.
And when he was there, there was some other great, great
scientist named I don't remember who came and said,
well, you're all so smart.
What's time?
Give me a definition.
And no one could define time.
The scientists on their own set for this test could not define.
Well, so far, Jack's favorite is mine, which I've always loved.
And so when we come to that-- and the other one which
I found out I didn't know that I just overheard him tell me,
what do you think Bruce said about what man is.
So you just get that or cut to the bone.
And these just some-- maybe you're
just lucky I didn't find more of them.
This is "Big."
"What is big?
A breakable bravado and necessity.
A lizard to a mite.
A leaf is a madrigal held in place.
Listen, spring, a golden gurgle.
And time, a ladder from nowhere to nowhere
with somewhere in between.
Pause for the universe.
The universe exploded as the original independence
from nothingness who was born reaching
for a non-existent violet.
Whatever there is of it, it is the stretchiest
and it still is reaching for the non-existent violet.
Death is the dust in the universe.
It says it is the violet.
Man and excitement.
Patience is the lizard ready to snatch.
And power is making it happen.
What is the it?"
[APPLAUSE]
May I say one thing more?
I am so disappointed at the weather
because I had hoped to have you all, well, kind of visit me.
That I do wish to say that after the reception, if anyone
wants to come to the poet's house, I'm going to be there.
And it's not very big--
if anybody wants to see how we all live,
who hasn't, I'm going right back from the reception
and anybody can come.
[APPLAUSE]
Thank you.