follow the poolside shadows
Venus of Delphi
daughter of bitter waves
peek through the peephole
of my glaucous thorax
open your byzantine eyes and
spurn your locomotor ataxia
one glance at our vitreous hands
– a sight for blind sore eyes
one brush of our riveted lips
– gone astray in malformations
one ponderous confession later
– immaterial as a shadow of the lash
let the weeping corpuscles lie
swarm and jostle in the grotto
rattle and blather away our days
I’ll wait for your recriminations
fall asunder under your touch
fastidious in my entomology
let the bouquet glide downstream
the scytheman is still in his kingdom
then we rejoice in endless daze
the lingering beaten with bravura
ogling the green man - triangle between his nose and the dairy goat
scytheman spoils - dreamy village, ‘cept for the upside-down violinist
green man wears cap and St. Andrew’s cross -
tree of life pinched between fingers
cubist colors - emotive impact, up and down, side to side, frenzy
Young men in virile stride
Pass to see the prize that awaits.
Competitive glares that will push the envelope
Who will stand to accept the honor?
"You will never win the Spaceman of the Year Award!!"
"I will SO!"
Into the chamber for another test
Mistakes made here cause no harm, but for another try.
Out on the pad the candle waits
. . . 3, 2, 1, and the earth trembles.
In weightless triumph, a linking to the station
Tasks completed, only to find the Scytheman lurks aboard.
Decisions made must be obeyed
Life, in a momentary test of wills.
A Commander must make the choice
"You haven't the love of humanity for it !!!"
Love, Humanity, Home he will never see again
Heavy his heart as his choice is in the mirrored image he sees.
"Get OFF my spaceship!"
A struggling crew depart
Cramped quarters aboard the station to await eventual rescue.
Commander alone
His "Good-byes" over the static.
Up at the zenith
The pockmarked Statesman glows.
A wry smile cosses his countenance as he hears the words
"Commander, you are the Spaceman of Life!!"
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