[John Riley]

I guess this may stretch what some here consider to be poetry. I wrote it as a standard poem first and then its form changed but I still think of it as a poem. Maybe a spoken-word poem? I would very much like to know what you think.



Sketches: Night/Dying Man/Wife


One

Sorry
Sorry?—You’re alive—
Existing
Fortunate—
I feel you next to me—at times—still—now
Waiting for the night to pass
You were not afraid when the snake appeared—sat quietly on your heels—
You were—frightened
Not frightened—there was no time for fear
Excited—
I loved the way you tended the flowers—
Where the snake appeared— I had known so many snakes before—
Yes—you found dark soil to tap over the roots
Continuity is the secret—tending plants
I brought the little rich soil I had to you—
You held me tight—
To the flowers


Two

We passed through the white house—I led the way
My two soft hands for you to hold
I chose one—we thought the house would never end
We can still be there—
Walking beneath threshold after threshold—
My soft hand is still in yours—
I no longer feel it
(Silence)


Three

Lavender fields full of birds—
You are awake
We left behind—I awoke—I thought of the lavender fields—
Sleep leaves us alive everywhere—
—that they would be here—birds with no color
What is your name—now—
It rained—puddles everywhere—
Now you are back—
The plants were still damp—
Your head so full of rain—


Four

What is that noise
A cry—
Do you hear it
What did it sound—
Outside the window—do you hear
Is it coming inside the house so—
Hush—
Is it inside now—
It’s gone
That is—
I hear nothing
Quiet—is a blessing


Five

Sleep now
My next sleep—
It’s well past midnight
The last—yes—
You need rest
Take my hand
Again
A last time
Before sleep
Yes. Before sleep