Reconstruction in
funeral blues
to ponder claw marks,
a kiss, his hands
a pale animal.
Small acids fragment
from her stomach,
arms bend back -
the body partially dissolved, heavy.
Transfer to the grave, freshly dug.
In the cemetery parking lot,
a faded black dress, manic,
fastened to the living.
Bind me:
this glare refuses
meaningful exchange,
ears achieving reluctance.
I used to acknowledge evidence,
a presence of feeling.
My wrists, out there,
embedded in an insult.
You turn it upside down sometimes,
a twine diary.
Enter: the way into the room is
too bright, but no matter.
Speechless, I carry on.
Embrace closure -
his hands, the gun,
hold on
for a beat.
Burying affection,
the good of
a bad thing
in ceremony,
leave will behind,
force wisdom
to the dead.
I don't know
how to stop,
afraid we'll
all be there together
without invitation.
I knew who she was.
Everybody did:
a couple questions,
a midnight violation,
bee stung lips -
a closer angle to
what you were looking for.
Syringe to her throat,
lush, a pleading beat.
So afraid,
undone.
After the funeral
white separates the high road,
mute at your door.
The body
a hard frailty,obstructing compassion.Careful you don't murder
this moment, unsophisticated.
Assent released,
a gesture inherent
to a measure of steel.
Let me tell you
about the dream I had
last night:
you were there to be broken,
impulses high,
a code waiting to become pictures.
I was old, couldn't stand
any longre.
Suddenly, a phone call;
one-armed neurons hushed to the end.
Do you know where dreams come from?
Mid-conversation,
the morgue,
a roving eye,
the good looks we choose,
a diversity in the forebrain,
the day,
unforeseen circumstances.
Guard your devotion.
Morning breaks out of her eyes,
collides with the
blushing slant in your handwriting.
You ask to leave;
under the door, a sip of approval.
Caressing the words, eager to tell,
it must mean something,
this connection.
Be careful; a name
unsure of its nature
indicates the far end of a heart,
identity close to north.
