Sicilian Mask

“How can you trust this man? Look, he has the map of Sicily on his face.”

—The Godfather, Part III

The face of the monster On the mountain, The monster on Mount Ibla.

Rock walls separate farm fields. The face of the farmer on each stone, Twisted by sweat, sand, The gloved fists of France And Spain.

The monster on the church façade: Face of cretin, Chains, knives, stiletto heels, Hidden torture chamber below the main Altars of churches. Carmelites, Assunzione, Immaculate conception, Saint John the Baptist, red rooster crown, Head on a plate, blood. Saint Rosalia licks Palermo plague-free, The hammer and the sickle. Quasimodo treks up to Rome, Poems in his back pocket, His father’s face sketched deeply on the palm of his hand. He closes it, holds it like a treasure.

Quasimodo, like a lily, Like a red rose, Like a yellow rose, Like a white rose,

The mask of Sicily on his face.