De Profundis

By the fiberglass statue of aphrodite 

at the swimming-pool’s edge 

she watches the invisible children 
 appear

and disappear 
 like wraiths, their shapes
echoed in the silhouetted palms of hotel windows
in the ballet of flies above the garbage cans

behind chinese restaurants, under ceiling fans
their voices curl through vases of cut flowers,
the steam that coils on a teacup’s lip, where

buses stop, they wheel about her
like a bitter wind, rearranging dead leaves
into forms in the air and later, in

the television's blue light
her elbows jutting against vacant glass
she watches the rain sweep sideways, only she

and the neon of late night supermarkets
she and the rain-black road, the tiny weight
of an empty hand

Reviews

[Amy Craig Beasley]

incredible word choice and arrangement ~ I really like this -

some humor - the fact that Aphrodite is fiberglass -
and magic- the invisible - suddenly visible

modern with the classic - common with the supernatural -

all around - I love it

[deeps]

Wow this is quite amazing!
I enjoyed this piece, hope to read more by you.

[Chris]

"Out of Depths..." - unwanted... the new homeless...where do children go when its just them? What's familiar...what to eat...who to be...

And god forgive - being children, they still play...

Ouch - this one bites... a unique gestalt.

Chris

[Jeremy Baker]

This is a daunting poem; so much is there is unravel. The images are dreamlike, the message is like a clarion. A great read - very good writing!

[Emily B]

welcome to this place

i am looking forward to reading more of your art