• Vol. 09
  • Chapter 04
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your promise

you were there, when
mother and i toured
the dana house
built by frank lloyd wright in springfield, illinois

commissioned by a woman who
dabbled in the occult
believed
in reincarnation

the dining room’s
stained glass windows
trace you
in all stages of existence

s  u  s  p  e  n  d  e  d
betweenleadveining

egg
caterpillar
chrysalis
full-flighted fruition

at ten a.m., when southwestern sun shines through
it bears you on each beam – gives
birth to you on each surface
transcendent
you alight on

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your promise

our arms
our faces
transform
our white t-shirts into impressionistic paintings

we stand
as if inside
your self-made sarcophagus
preparing for a life thereafter

*

rest now
on the chest
of my dear mother
laid out on our dining-room table for burial

your promise

encrypted
on that
angelic
w  i  n  g  s  p  a  n

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