Another Bad Bet

The wager went unsaid,
while I studied
non-dramatic literature, the rule
of law, Camus crashing into a tree,
Jungian rebirth (neat enough
to fit in the plot
of some Canadian novels
we pretend are more read
than they are),
but the gamble was there --
the dealer god (trapped
in my red grade school bible
like it was a 9-5 job)
or a tenured professor (still
proud of getting a doctorate
before 30), even if I never thought
how empty pockets filled with knowledge
would weigh me down,
make my fear of water redundant
as a English Literature degree
qualifying me to answer phones
for General Motors,
only to turn my future into a penny
sinking under a wish.