Douglas Clegg

From the Cenote of Dreams

May 23rd, 2019

First lines


From a handful of poems in The Poisoner’s Garden & Others.

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From “The Poisoner’s Garden”:

Among the thorny grasp of roses
Near aconite and pale foxglove
Far past the red anemone
‘Neath fruiting manzanilla tree
At temple of Persephone…

From “Why My Doll is Evil”:

She came from Japan
In 1963;
My father, on business,
Saw her in a shop window…

From “Swimming in Underwear”:

When I turned nineteen I fell in bed
With a boy my age.
Should I call us young men?
Did not feel like it.
We were naive
And living underwater
Swimming in underwear
With the world above our heads…

From “The Salt of Undone Collars”:

There are points in time
When specific people come together
To vandalize chitinous shells
With ancient vulgar graffiti…

From “On All Hallow’s Eve”:

In villages dark
When spies the night moon
On All Hallows’ Eve
The witches festoon
Dim trees with bright lanterns
And with artful resolve
Beat drums to a mystery
No one can solve…

From “For St.Valentine’s Day”:

For St.Valentine’s Day
I rip out my heart
And beg young bully Eros
The use of a dart…

 

 

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