That Virginia
Cascades of chirping birds
pour down in colorful swarms
while I walk the same clean roads
you just walked yesterday.
A toy stuck in its mechanism
I religiously search
Over and over, I vacuum
all areas of town.
Under the same sun that stroke me
in late mornings I see
the barren roofs’ skyline
strawberry, lavender and after mint tints.
A pale yellow pierces me deep in my heart
was it your tank top
or your beautiful arms.
I stroll down Virginia ave
on sunny mornings alone,
delinquent I burst blindfolded by light
and slide down the hill
as I did many times
of others’ working days the beauty I enjoy.
Out on my own with no one to play
I turn left on Monroe
with no signs of life
just quiet cars cruise by the lifeless row
of soft pastels townhouses’ emaciated tones.
I turn my eyes uphill to the traffic that speeds
I see butterflies drawn to the fire that kills
I admire the beauty and poison
of decadent flowers
who grow wild on Ponce to breathe air that’s sour .
There is a tranquil simplicity
that here hides the crimes
and covers the tragedies of everyday life.
It’s hopeful monotony that makes us all numb
to live in a dream’s dissonance and charm.
Could be the architecture, the linear design
the empty stores’ windows, the derelict beings?
This walk is a sample of our Southern lives
covered by dust and irreparable lies.
Copyright © Albino Mattioli | Year Posted 2019
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