by Nathaniel Mackey

    - "mu" fifth part -

    His they their

    we， their he

    his was but if

    need be one，

    self-

    extinguishing

    I， neither sham¹ nor

    excuse yet an

    alibi²， exited，

    out，

    else

    the only where

    he'd be.

    Before

    the long since

    remaindered

    body， imagines

    each crack， each

    crevice³ as it sweats

    under cloth，

    numbed⁴

    inarticulate

    tongues touching⁵

    down on love's endlessly

    warmed-over thigh⁶.

    The awaited one

    she mistook him for haunts

    him， tells him in

    dreams he told

    him so.

    Such offense⁷，

    but at what

    won't say，

    moot⁸

    remonstrance⁹，

    no resolve if not

    not to be caught

    out. . .

    Abstract advance， its

    advantage unproved，

    unbelieved-in，

    vain

    what wish would

    give. . .

    Late eighties

    night

    momentarily bleached¹⁰ by

    bomblight. Awoke，

    maybe inwardly wanted

    it，

    wrestling with dreams

    of the

    awaited one again.

    Thought

    back but a moment later

    what moodier¹¹ start

    to have gotten off

    to，

    angered by that but

    begrudged¹² it its impact

    and

    so sits remembering，

    pretending， shrugs¹³ it

    off. . .

    Arced harp¹⁴. Dark

    bent-over body. Esoteric

    sun whose boat its

    back

    upheld. . .

    Unseizably

    vast underbelly of

    light，

    limb-letting thrust.

    Tread of

    hoofs¹⁵. Weighted udders of

    dust. . .

    His it their she

    once they awake，

    the

    arisen one，

    world

    at her feet，

    her feet

    one with their

    rapture¹⁶，

    ankledeep in damage

    though she

    dances. . .

    The slippings off

    of her

    of their hands define

    her hips¹⁷， whose are

    the suns whose

    heat

    his nights taste

    of

    and as at last he

    lies her legs loom¹⁸，

    naked，

    loose gown pulled from

    her， sleep

    turns.

    And he with his

    postures

    cramps the air，

    bent

    lotuslike， lips

    part kiss，

    part

    pout

上一篇：It Happens Like This 下一篇：Iowa