Distance – Page 32

I hit a doorknob
or tripped and fell down the stairs-
I’m just so clumsy
–
an autumn eve-
the sky lit by
a house on fire

rumbling through the dark
long trains roll westbound under
thunder and lightning
–
drying hay-
the countryside
glides past

I may seem nice but
if I had my way I’d carve
the meat from your bones
–
desperate thirst-
lions in the
tall grass

trying to balance-
one foot on the precipice
of your adulthood
–
the arc of the sun-
change made
in a single day

a roadside vigil-
flowers for a young man turned
forever nineteen
–
sudden silence-
shell casings
in the grass

the magic kingdom-
selling scraps of happiness
at a fat profit
–
finally awake-
finding nothing
behind the curtain

echoes in the walls-
this unfurnished apartment
hiding its secrets
–
harvest moon-
cool wind
in the corn field

the front door ajar-
shards of glass litter the hall
of my ruined home
–
crows take wing –
a fir crashes
to the forest floor

late into the night-
pouring over lesson plans
and student papers
–
a clenched fist-
time still runs
through my fingers

the afternoon sky-
dark shadows of contrails paint
the white clouds bellow
–
early morning-
my head and office
above the clouds