Monday, September 03, 2012

Ant by Moonlight

Monstrous that the moon should rise tonight,
bulge-headed, throwing

shadows without scale or increment:
in its light that a benighted traveler ant

should cross pools of gleaming motor oil,
his legs ticking

in an abominable
hail of photons –

even worse. What tyrant god
allows this home-wrecking,

this scouring floodlight, this bleaching breach
of peace? The Queen of Night is nailed up

by a few faint lyrical stars, helpless,
while the bloat of the moon

drifts through her kingdom:
day-creatures stutter on their shadows,

their eye-buds breathe in phosphor,
they taste

with their feet
the poisoned ground.

5 comments:

Dick said...

So many fine phrases and lines here, Dale (after that great title) - 'throwing / shadows without scale or increment', 'an abominable / hail of photons', 'a few faint lyrical stars', 'their eye-buds breathe in phosphor'. Oh, the whole thing! Love it.

Anne said...

I agree with Dick, but my favorite is "They taste with their feet the poisoned ground."

I like poems to end with their best lines.

Dale said...

Thanks so much! It's all Emily Dickinson's fault.

christopher said...

Without question!

marly youmans said...

Keep reading Emily. Like it.