- Taura Scott
The Talk
Palomino tells bay
the horrors
of death
The bay listens;
imagines through
clouded eyes,
his lips curl back
in disbelief.
- Lois P. Jones
Acrobats in the Tomb
Tell me emperor, what spirit goods
shall accompany you?
You’re just like us but more clever.
You want your toys – a zither player
and a contortionist. A warmonger
and one billion actors for a play.
Shall we bury our ipods
and laptops? Include an old vinyl
of Horowitz playing Chopin nocturnes?
Or the Tibetan Book of the Dead?
To ensure a ruler lives forever,
bury all his soldiers by his side.