Almost All of Every Life Goes Unremarked

Maureen McLane observed a subtle fact

Folks often neglect or simply forget—

For all your talk of scrutinizing works

Of art scrutinizing bodies and lives,

And for all your self-conscious awareness

Of what other people may think of you,

Of how the algorithms of machines

Are constantly tracking and predicting

Your fiscally relevant behaviors,

And maybe the political ones, too,

Of little you, your body in your life—

Most of the time, others’ minds are elsewhere

Than on your body, your behaviors, you:

A sleeping / woman is an erotic

thing in many a painting // But / And / you

are sleeping / and no one’s painting / or

writing or looking / You’re sleeping by the

cat. And she’s right. Most of your lives, most of

You, your behaviors, whoever you are,

Whatever you’re doing, right now reading

Us speaking to you about this strange fact,

Amounts to sleeping, unseen, by the cat.