THE CONQUEST OF SPACE

I: HORIZON

It is an angle of attack
the line an argument might take
for some it is a winning streak

It is the sliver of pure black
where saints and sailors disembark
somewhere to rest or a long walk

II: MNEMONIC in remembrance of me

Speechless, they gather to be fed
to lay the tables in the head
to cover them with flesh and blood

Arresting images indeed
idiots, lips moving as they read
the dead feasting upon the dead

III: EXPLORAÇÃO

It was too strange to be ignored
was too desirable for words
it was the startling cry out loud

America. New-found reward.
A silence promptly overpowered
by speakers of the True Word.

IV: INTERIOR

One by one the fingers curl
clench unclenching round the bowl.
A teacup clatters and is still.

Christ you drive me up the wall
How an argument can fill
this empty house a new hell.

Previously published in PN Review 163 (2005)