Period Doubling Route to Chaos

It starts somewhere at x and moves to y,
Zigzagging like a random, fleeting z,
While in my heart it seems to multiply
And run away toward infinity.
It starts like some equation in a dream
That sums up all the things I feel in me—
This sky, this night, this moon—all somehow seem
To resonate in perfect symmetry.
This nightclub, where I come to spend my time
And contemplate the female form disrobed
Before the cheering throng of horny guys,
Where I still find a certain glimpse of hope—
A random spark that fuels my fantasy...
And when it’s over, all the drunks return
To their dull and unfulfilling lives,
Yet in my mind and heart it twists and turns—
That random switch that’s keeping me alive.


   March 4, 1997
--Alexander Shaumyan