the vulture eats between her meals a bottle fly, a pair of eels a rotting carcass in the ditch a taste to make your stomach hitch to tide her o'er till dinner bell a politician straight from hell putrid, lifeless, soulless lout see the vulture crunch his snout swallow his ears, his fingers, a toe spit out eyebrows, the tie must go even the vulture has her limits she vomits him out in a matter of minutes
ORPHEUS, EURYDICE, AND HERMES
I.
She remembers she was keen, vigilant, and efficient.
She remembers that the kill was quick,
that hushed bones cracked deep inside the body.
Hovering, she was All gliding, All diving,
All futures soon to shriek
kee-ahrrr down down, kee-ahrrr!
She remembers a sting, and trying to focus
in this dark place. She whose electric glance
could track the wild tracings
of a fly two worlds away,
dazed, injured, unfocused.
She is in the dark for many futures.
Then Who-is-larger comes beside her
and pulls on her feet,
makes her feet go to him.
Pulling air with her wings she tries to escape
but Who-is-larger holds fast,
murmuring like leaves in autumn.
Together, for her feet seem fastened
to Who-is-larger now,
they move through the darkness.
II.
The sun puts its rats through their mazes,
sucks the waves from the sea,
forces open the reluctant lilies.
Its grief a white light on all it can reach,
the sun can do nothing
without looking.
III.
Stepping from the darkness
Who-is-larger closes his eyes against the bright light.
The sun, ecstatic, covers everything instantly.
She, tilting her head, with one eye glares skyward
then turns away
blinded, focused on nothing.
Powerless, now, to reach her,
the sun, severed, floats on, grieving
blood-red at the last.
Bird and Tree
There, again. See? A small darting thing
with sharp edges and a wide brim
went into the dark arms of the tall one that whispers
constantly, its mouths dangling from tiny handles.
The small one calls out, bragging—or
pleading—
its brim tucked away,
dagger mouth waving in the air.
It builds a little jail and stabs at it, then
goes in search of a prisoner.
The tall one waits. Where are its eyes?
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