in the city money sleeps on the street
pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters
to find a coin portends more to come
put a penny in your shoe, walk around
like an octopus
its tentacles armed with seductive suction cups
holds fast its grip, foments strangulating self-doubt
a craving for that adrenalin rush
the bright lights never dim
pollute the night, obscure infinity
fleeting, meaningless encounters
block peripheral […]
this house, so much comfort here
subsurface – I
imagine hands wielding shovels
dreams reinforced by timbers
felled in back country
forested decades before cement
trucks excavated, solidified foundation
before natural gas supplanted coal
corner of root cellar, diagonally opposite coal chute
hollowed out for pipe, meter.
half a century passes
utility removes old meter, re-installs exteriorly
discovers repository for twelve two-inch glass
bottles of LePage’s grip spreader […]
before the snow melt
before the maples sprout their buds
cauldrons of hot maple syrup
ladled onto snow laden makeshift tables
scraped off, taffy on a stick
chased down with hot spiced wine
plume of wood smoke billows
foot stomping, accordion bellows
fill cabane a sucre
they sing, “mon pays c’est l’hiver”.
here, on the eastern slopes, my country is the wind
as it devours the […]
a neighbourly gesture?
That summer Mama sent us to Anna’s house to scrub pots
did I help?
I couldn’t have
I would remember
And not rely upon the memory of my sister, Teresa.
I recall Mama cringe when hearing them say
“they must be Jews or communists to have gotten out of there.”
The new Polish school principal was labeled a communist
Anna and […]
airplane propeller whirled round and round
formenting turbulence and such a din
we could hardly bid our father farewell
one of the first to return through Checkpoint Charlie
to homeland occupied still.
German shepherds on platform
collared to black uniformed border patrol
sheet metal obscured view of Potsdammer Platz
passport photo crossed-referenced to father
commanded to remove glasses
stand aside
like so many predeceasing him in […]
