Guides, and: and the word was
- Guides, and: and the word was
Guides
Help us cross midnighthours of sandpaper and stone.
Our sky packedwith loved ones.
We remember them.We are misplaced—
tracing each other’s boneswith trembling hands.
Tribal dances harpoon balance.Remember—
Help us throughthis dusty geometry. [End Page 101]
and the word was
1 light shimmering
between curtains, mother’ssalt, mytwo-year-old tongue.
2 a singlenote and the symphony—swell of treble into bronzewings,
the lost sun-streakedhour, staccato-punched sky by five.
3 smoke and no name, smearedpencil on graphedpaper, mouth strungwith gray pearls, bulging pockets—
secrets, drytaste of letter-less envelope on “sweet sixteen.” [End Page 102]
4 unzipped carbonnanotubes, the union of atoms,the space after exhale, light
particles and waves in orderedchaos of the universeby thirty-one.
5 now—GOD, you areocean-side waves beatingtilde of sand,
gold tenderness, horizon unfolding pastsight, dancing closeon outstretched fingers. [End Page 103]
Terri Muuss, whose poetry has appeared in numerous journals including Paterson Literary Review, Apercus Quarterly, Atticus Review, Stirring, Woven Tale Press, and Red River Review, and three anthologies, has been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes in poetry. She is author of Over Exposed (2013) and the one-woman show, Anatomy of a Doll. Anatomy of a Doll was named Best Theatre: Critics’ Pick of the Week by the New York Daily News and has been performed thro ughout the United States and Canada since 1998. As a licensed social worker, Muuss specializes in the use of the arts as a healing mechanism for trauma survivors. www.terrimuuss.com terrimuuss@verizon.net
