August
2010, $12.95
978-0982162538 paper binding
poetry
A SEA CHANGE
The fever
of August has stormed itself out.
Bouts of sweat and fury have blistered me weak.
Wrack, rock, seaweed disentangle and tangle the
shore.
Surely, I didn’t use to wash my glasses
so often.
Afternoons crumble underfoot like shredded wheat.
What a genius I have for confusion.
My handwriting belongs to someone
else.
Alzheimer-like, crab-wise, I take down this dictation.
A titian-haired cocker spaniel named Lizzie
Dazzles me, never leaving my side. Anxious. A
rescue dog.
Dragged back, I don’t know where my home
is either. Mother, you won’t believe how dark the
dark is.
St. Francis received the first
stigmata.
Mata Hari wore silk and duplicity like mine.
Mindful of the steps, I write these splintering
words
as swords of light hang from the eaves like ice.
My eyes still know winter when I see it.
