The idea of expressing the pain of unrequited love in terms of the danger of the conjunction “and” is the most distinctive concept of the contenders. And the interjections of incomplete pairings of lovers are inventive and effective.
The situation appears to be that the woman, who according to the song is stranded in Burma, is having a conversation with Johnny. I am left with questions about how the song and the poem relate to one another: Surabaya v. Burma; how her reply relates to his question; what the snakes imply (Medusa and Poseidon?); and how the poem’s ending fits the song situation.
John
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