Essay on the Intricacies of Death
Rent from DeepDyve- Essay on the Intricacies of Death
The ice storm felled the hawthorn —its vast carcass sprawled,crystal-furred.
Scarred trunk, blackened thorns.Grooves in the bark.My tender, curious fingers.
The extravagant declaration of ice.
Of coursein the months that passed,the earth warmed.
The neighbors inquired politelyif I would ever get rid of that tree,it was an eyesore, really a menace.
I didn't oil the chainsaw,I didn't hack awaythe crown of branches.
Refusal, my life.
Occasionally I dreamed of a bonfire.Like Savonarola, I thoughtthe only way to purify is to burn.
Lighter fluid. Limbs wovenover kindling. In the possibility of fireI built some wildish love.
My chapped hands laidstones down, a circleto witch the flames. [End Page 19]
But a wet spring came upon us,and my dreams went dark,after which I learned there were several methods
for disposing of the dead. [End Page 20]
Elisa Gonzalez is a writer of poetry and prose who lives in Cyprus. Her work appears in Hyperallergic, Lambda Literary Poetry Spotlight, New Yorker online, and elsewhere. A graduate of Yale University and the New York University creative writing program, she has received support from the Norman Mailer Foundation, Bread Loaf Writers' Conference, and the Fulbright Program.
