The Exchange Rate(In Homage to Nicanor Parra’s “Exchanges”)

Exchanging yellow for orange. 
Exchanging purple for yellow. 
Exchanging red for purple. 
Exchanging blue for red. 
Just no more of that goddam green. I just can’t bear it anymore. It is just everywhere. 

Exchanging lying down for sitting up. 
Exchanging jumping for lying. 
Exchanging walking for jumping. 
Exchanging skipping for walking
And then whoa, looky here I am lying down again.  

Exchanging cereal for fried eggs. 
Exchanging buttery toast for cereal.
Exchanging nothing for buttery toast. 
Thanks, I’ll just have coffee this morning. I’ve lost my appetite. 

Just last week corruption replaced upstandingness
And boastfulness replaced humility. 
Right now, in response, I exchange this present tense for that past tense. 
Yes indeedy, I am writing this now. But not that.  
Exchanging this gentle anything for that nasty everything.