A Psyche-Deli Dream

It was only a dream, but it felt so real:

I stepped into a floating psyche-deli,

Tempted by the spicy vermicelli.

A setting supreme! A magical meal!

But something in that creamy, rich cannoli

Lifted me and lowered me so slowly.

And I sailed to a harbor where past and present meet.

Rock 'n' roll was blasting from a chariot on the street.

I stopped at the amphitheater for a souvenir;

They served me Falernian wine when I asked for beer.

It was only a dream, but it felt so real;

I felt so at home in that psyche-deli.

It triggered happy noises in my belly.

A setting supreme! A magical meal!

But something in that creamy, rich cannoli

Lifted me and lowered me so slowly.

On a day like any other day in ancient Pompeii
Vesuvius cooled its jets and pink-floyded away:
It floated like an isle into the Tyrrhenian Sea.

It was an alternate version of 79 A.D.

[instrumental interlude]

It was only a dream, but it felt so real:

And guess who joined me in that psyche-deli?

Michelangelo and Machiavelli!

A setting supreme! A magical meal!

But something in that creamy, rich cannoli

Lifted me and lowered me so slowly.

And when the dream was finally done,

I heard someone say, "Leave the gun,

Take the connoli."

David Acosta © 2025