The Greater the Anticipation the More Likely the Anticlimax

Imagination’s made of memory,
And memories are known to be faulty,
And anticipation’s known to outstrip
Experience of pleasure or pain.

Astronomical calculations show
That the bigger the star, the faster
The burn. (By bigger, here we mean
More massive.) Imagination,

That is, motheaten memory
For things people have said a lot,
Feels like stars should serve as analogy
For some truism about humans,

Knowing they don’t likely. Still, no sooner
Does the phrase land in mind—
The bigger the star, the faster
The burn—than anticipation

Gathers its skirts and settles itself,
Eager for the coming connection,
The link that will make sense of things,
The insightful message it’s sure is there,

As it’s sure the sprinkled, frosted donut
Will taste good, so good the mouth
Is already watering, thanks to vague
Happy memory. Who cares if it’s stale?