Irene Koronas
Listening for Emily

I

what would you have me do,
forget sunrise, the ripples
that gather in pools on rainy days,
the pollywogs deep in wooded meadows
or the blah blah blah on sunday morning
before neighbors try to sit quietly --

of course I remember the touch
of every day
of oranges in pewter bowls
of ironing boards in kitchen closet
the pretense of smooth

II

sleeping on hard mahogany bed,
pillow cases’ cut lace edge,
the windows misshapen
leaded glass, pain distorts my view --
watching see-saw riders,
robins, the peaking noise

III

how odd for this late hour
when usual people sleep --
if only I could hear them
before they disappear like crickets
or grasshoppers deep in field
their chatter explains nothing
not even our time

IV

fascicle opens the sky, where once
childhood was present

I never was young, never
was I young

<< Back to Issue 14, 2010