My Mother Gave Me A Suitcase
My mother gave me a suitcase
and she filled it with dreams
birds on an electric wire
sea gulls flying against moonbeams
eclipses wrapped in sweet nothings
a Tsumani bundled in a camisole
a scented silk scarf- triangle of Bermuda
Elysian flowers for my hennaed hair
a georgette wrap in turquoise orchestra
satin nights decked in diamond glare
a mauve silken pouch full of shadows
dancing on the edge of frozen ice
smoky pencils for my waterproof eyes
an ivory comb stood entangled, alone
a solitaire twinkled in its abysmal throne
October nights, glittering galaxies
My mother gave me a suitcase
she forgot to put in it-
The mournful rendezvous of miseries
The sound of olive branches snapping
The click of a dagger beneath a tunic
The smell of burning ashes
The rot of festering gashes
The footsteps of drowning spring
The flames of quest, rising in panic
My mother gave me a suitcase
she forgot to put in it-
A chisel, a hammer, a stone
A club, an axe, a knife,
A dress of starless black silk
The hiss of a viper
The infinite emptiness of life.