When
I Was Seventeen
A woman claiming she has no arms,
brings me hot chocolate,
Now cold, from an all-night diner,
Gum
stuck to its cup.
She lost them
Trying to catch her breath.
Safe
among my books
And
kitchen utensils.
She studies my rugs
And calls me love.
Once she ran naked through a hospital
In Milan.
They
even tried to kill her with Clorox
In Venice.
She wants me to sing Frank Sinatra,
When
I Was Seventeen,
Because it's cold out
And all the bars are full.
Outside,
A hundred small sparrows
Wait for my breadcrumbs
Their arms are long
And inviting.
The Incident
It was a blood bath
Deer,
coyote
pigeons
goldfish
Strewn along the open road.
We waited for what seemed like days
For the EMS to arrive.
We spoke cordially,
Each word pulled
From the raffle drum.
"Jesus, it's hot."
We watched,
Counting the hours
Until the ambulance driver
Got down on her knees
Looking for each stopped heart
Before the rain came
To wash the bodies away.
"Look," you said
Pointing to the crows watching us
From the phone wire along the roadside,
"they're praying."
Copyright © 2003 Anthony Salerno