He brought her a manuscript made from sidewalks
and evening air.
He had eaten stars, nearly died, fathered a revolution,
all while admiring the lilies in her hair.
She complained of her situation and boredom while drinking
formaldehyde.
He developed a cough, and from the cough
came the man she now lounges beside.
Someone buried the manuscript and where it was buried
roses unfurled.
He fills his pipe with suicide, does not recognize his only child
and the woman smiles, become an ingenue, a cipher, a nattering girl.
______
I seem to be able to relate to a lot of this--I have sat next to men who derived from a cough, and I only wish they had admired the lilies in my hair a little less distantly. I love the tone of this, the sense of viewing a train wreck but a very beautiful one, without taking the time to identify the casualties too conscientiously. Everything and everyone changes, and seldom do we even feel the cold breeze til its too late. Another one of your gems, Shay.
ReplyDeleteHow fresh, original and intoxicating too.. I was startled by this rich boldness of this piece and will certainly be back for more and see what you come up with next! Great...
ReplyDeleteThe transition from a man who has eaten stars, nearly died, fathered a revolution,
ReplyDeleteall while admiring the lilies in her hair, to the husk of a man who fills his pipe with suicide is sad... as is the relationship described.
Love hurts because it sucks. Perennially. That's the vampire's downer, you get to feed on dust for centuries. But whatarewegonnado? Natter and chill.
ReplyDeleteThe amazing imagery you have crafted to capture the delicacy of a relationship in it's rise and then complacent fall is utterly breathtaking! I love this poem Shay!!
ReplyDeleteA really great poem of love and the cycle to dementia and death. Drinking formaldehyde, eating too much, or smoking our lungs out is part of that cycle.
ReplyDeleteIt feels frightening yet comforting at the same time. Not easy to do in a poem. It's lively but deadly.
ReplyDeleteI especially love your opening stanza. Just wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThe arc of a love affair: from something sublime to suicidal sadness, but so beautiful anyway!
ReplyDeleteLove the surreal imagery and the title is perfect! 💗
ReplyDeleteWow, amazing how far one can fall after eating stars. Yes, love can certainly take its toll. The manuscript should have been rewritten years ago, would it change the outcome, I wonder.
ReplyDelete