incarnations.
2006-05-28 4:59 p.m.
gathered up, these experiencesin all their dress
are come ons, are provocateurs
are children
clamoring for our attention.
come closer, i have images, stories
in the follicles, in the flakes of skin, and i have been
hungry here, wanting to give you something personal,
wanting to hand you something genetic
to say, this is for you, to exchange one part of me
for another, for the conversation we'll carry, our tongues
clicking together,
excitement.
as an act of inspirition (this will be quiet), i put
my hand and legs deep into the forest, let the ants
take me into pieces, and for the sake of socialism
i was the food of queens and minions, apprehended.
complaint: there is no fit to match me, i
find myself out in the street, baring souls up in the city, thinking windows
will make walls between us, between myself and strangers, and i,
the stranger of the two,
have leaned my head against the glass, pretending public, pretending
comfort in the eyes of others.
that hopefulness that has sustained
me, that has been clear cut and defiant, now fails
and i have caught my knees, gathering
my body tight and wretched,
forced myself to believe in the hardship, in its passing, in the trees for wearing my skin upon their branches, flags that i have had the visions
symbols that i once lived.