“He’s Such a Good Listener”

I knew a man who made money
from having three ears.

While some stood in line
at the plow shop, waiting for their turn

to get sharpened,
and golfers

hunkered on greens
and bells rang at school,

he performed the trick of listening
all afternoon.

Professional nods.
Some autopilot smiling. . . .

His secret was that his third ear
cancelled out the others,

while also picking up the talk
of distant whales.

Rob Carney is the author of four previous books of poems, most recently 88 Maps (Lost Horse Press 2015). His fifth collection, The Book of Sharks, is forthcoming from Black Lawrence Press in July 2018. He lives in Salt Lake City. He is a regular contributor toTerrain.org: https://www.terrain.org/tag/rob-carney/