The Emperor of Ice Cream

The Emperor of Ice-Cream

Call the roller of big cigars,
The one with the muscular arms, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups the concupiscent curd.
Let the wenches dawdle in such dresses
As they are wont to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.
Let be the finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

Take from the dresser of deal,
Lacking the three glass knobs, and the one missing leg, that sheet
On which she was wont to embroider horses
And spread it so to cover her face.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.

(paraphrased from The Emperor of Ice Cream) Wallace Stevens (1922)

I thought it would be nice to have some poetry in the general discussion. Here is a particularly beautiful poem by Wallace Stevens, I have just written it down as I remembered it, which is to say paraphrased it in a sense.