by Stephen Gold

“It may seem pretty unfair, but ugly people’s lives are shorter.”
—The Times

“What a piece of work is man.”
Although it’s oft been said,
Alas, it’s never said of me,
That’s why I’ll soon be dead.

I’m hunched of back, grotesque of eye,
My broken teeth are yellow.
You’ll hear no cry as I pass by,
“Oh! What a handsome fellow!”

Now tolls the bell to bid farewell,
And go to join the dodo.
If looks can kill,
It seems they will.
Yours ever,
Quasimodo.