[Poem] Reincarnation
2009-10-05 @ 4:15 p.m.
upon exiting the libraryi see you there:
already dead,
on a bed of cement.
moved by pity
i stand
and i stare.
compulsively i reach down
and gather you into a nest of
purple fabric, vibrantly,
violently violet
against gray and yellow
my fingertips search:
can i cradle you until you move?
but the only pulse
is my own.
a hollow of sadness
carves its own place into my stomach.
without thinking i move,
walking,
watching you do nothing
but lie dead
as i head uncomprehending toward the pond.
(mirror of the sky)
i stand like a mourner on the edge
of the pond like a six-foot hole
opening its mouth
to consume the bones of someone i love.
the moments glide by on falling leaves.
i lay your frail body on a lush boat of green.
downy feathers, pale,
storm and sunshine and
a white belly like the clouds,
with a brave red slash above your eyes
that puts me in mind
of the mouths of kings' mistresses
or the badges on the chests of soldiers.
here, little birdie;
taste the sky again, reflected here
on the glassy still plane of the pond.
here is a new heaven,
a new world.
goldfish,
orange jots of color moving in a mystery
beneath the surface
crowd around you:
a halo.
i think you are a saint.