Can’t Breathe
Can’t Breathe
I can’t breathe
Something’s in my throat
Darkness closing ‘round me…
Losing feeling in my limbs
Not quite thinking clearly
I can’t breathe Read the rest of this entry »
The Ancient Heroes
The Ancient Heroes
Rage—Goddess, sing the rage!
The rage of purest flesh condemned by tainted feather,
Of cities toppled by heavenly lust,
Of households destroyed by god-like deception!
Klytemnestra
Klytemnestra
Klytemnestra, you baleful broad!
What words have come out of your mouth?
Agamemnon is your wedded husband; loyalty is his due.
What dishonor ran through your mind when your thoughts headed south?
Your dear bridegroom fights nobly,
And with the gods favor will destroy
Every wall, every beast, every bower,
Every temple, every priest, every tower,
And each man, child and woman that is a scion of Troy.
Merge With the Wind
Merge With the Wind
Caress me o my lover
Tease my hair
Kiss my lips
Raise the hair on my arms
Make me shiver
Make me cold
So you can warm me up again.
The Funeral Parlor
The Funeral Parlor
Elmer O’Rourke had been Director of O’Rourke’s Funeral Parlor for the last ten years, having inherited the business after his father Seamus had passed away. I say “passed away” now; before I worked for Elmer, I had always said “died” in ignorance of my own insensitivity. Apparently, people weren’t supposed to up and die anymore, instead everyone passes away. I never bothered to ask where exactly they pass to. Anyway, Elmer’d had the run of this place for the last ten years, and I’d worked for Elmer for the last three weeks. Read the rest of this entry »
Betraying Justice
Betraying Justice
I woke up in the early hours before dawn, in that eerie transition between darkness and light when the sky hasn’t yet begun to lighten but the birds are singing in merry anticipation. I stared blearily at my bedside candle that burned throughout the night; I never slept in the dark. It seemed to burn with an anticipation of its own, and altogether different from that of the birds. Day was coming and the flame would be extinguished. Would it ever be lit again? In a day’s time, perhaps less, I would know. I had planned this day for the last several months, and dreamt of it for years.
Today I would kill my husband. Read the rest of this entry »
