Cezanne could have walked here, in these Italian hills,
as seen from the train
on the way from Catania to Naples.

but no. i take it back.
where would he have found level ground to place his easel?

but if he had,
if he had worked here,
maybe Italy’s entrance into modernism would have been
more gentle than it was.
and perhaps
Marinetti would have written less aggressive essays
than he had,
in the 1930s.
and Italian artist’s would have made more poetic art.

but still,
the things they made were beautiful,
everyone agrees.
and certainly,
there paintings will be appreciated
long after the war has been forgotten.