Ex Libellus Seraphinus



1.
butterflies swim
in ethereal darkness
vortices
in the no-longer empty
-a sigh-
the first breath
of a drowned man
where a universe
new and luminous
unfolds
2.
a beast named pretense
roams foggy isles
appearing here and there
among tree and tower
voracious, sensuous
consumed and filled
remember this:
pretense makes the best
shoe leather
3.
forever spinning
the Earth lies!
it is not the Sun
that moves
rising then dying
greedily snatching away
these few moments
leaving only
fingerprinted memory
the Earth lies!
the Sun does not move
but she does.
4.
kind gentlemen

say: empty your pockets
take: your cigarettes
put on: gloves
say: don't panic

life

becomes: interesting
5.
sweat is as much his element
as soup to a fish
tonight he recommends
the bisque
6.
all of his poems
begin
with the absurd
or
the inscrutible
but
when he speaks to you
there is no riddle
no mystery
no obfuscation
only this:
7.
vast diesel engines
threshing machines designed for
stretching out our souls
8.
recognize the words
nod here and then
when cadence and tone
suggest a need
but don't be bothered
about meaning
these lips are all wrong
this breath is not sweet
soft fingers
become hard fist
never to brush away a tear
or save a kiss tenderly
in a hip pocket
to be drawn out later
in darkness
tasted and savoured
served quietly
with a splash of salt
9.
All and Not
empty and full
eternity whispers
into a young boy's ear
he hears a vacuum
cleaner and more terrible
than his mother's
pointless upright
bag full not of nothing
he cries
infection medication
maybe tubes
he wants to swim
All and Not says naught
worlds turn
dreams and walls fall
and burn
stillness settles in again
a boy tries to sleep
infinity inverts
inside his head
and sings

-zvyozd-
10.
they say
two heads are better than one
but
three heads are not an advantage
when trying to decide between

denver omelettes
strawberry crepes
buttermilk pancakes
and
human flesh

Cerberus knew this
as does
International House of Pancakes
a subsidiary of
DineEquity
11.
hidden at the core of things
a suggestion subtle
but insistent

all paths lead to Rome
though few lead away
and noble Caesar
rules dusty shelves

a breath gathers
in the heart of the matter
ragged and hot
honeyed and sweet
waiting
to clothe a word

between a suggestion
and a word
this trembling pause
the essence of eternity

night yields to day
in slow gasps
but always takes back
what is hers
12.
poetry written
at night in a parking lot;
insignificant?
13.
verdant feathers
pregnant earth
saline breeze
where oaken blade
once stirred the sea
the swallow's flight
to and fro
the hunter's cradle
thin fingers curl
this fading misnamed nine
a shattered beam
two nephrite coins
and warm rain
tears of the setting sun
moist soil
bright bulbs
and the promise of blooms
at the hunter's repose
14.
o1b6f
t5e2u
a3c4s
15.

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