It was a human place. On either side
young women and young men held manmade things
contrived for widening their lives. Some held,

At first sight muffled silence
at first sight the immanence of night
at first sight colors advance

It's summer: none of the toilets will flush;
just enough water for a half-swirl wets
the sides, coughs and stops. No more dependable

Tin cans rolling across the patio
wake me. Creeping downstairs I make a plan—
fling open the door to scare the racoons

Manifest from the imperceptible
convexity of the eye
—that by which we know the earth is round—
eternity is circular
but flat

On this beautiful Saturday in May
Sophie has married Michel
and Michel has married Sophie

Rear the great monument
to the brain’s
nearest and dearest.

Wouldn’t you say that the locksmiths come back from fishing for whales
their hands full
and their looks ecstatic

 The idea is, it makes life easier
by giving the unwanted thing
a looser hold. Never mind

We watched her raise herself; her eyes, unseeing
The damask walls and delicate ornament,
As if she thought she heard a servant thieving,