The City Without You
By Reginald Harris (’97,’98,’01)

I
Thunderstorm and early morning
rain Wind a drunken boarder
who's lost his keys, rattling the windows.
The wrong house.

II
Bustling streets continue
bustling. Shining towers continue to
be named. Traffic lights
continue lighting, treadmill red to
green: The city, continuing.

III
"Settled"
the way a house is settled into its foundations

IV
streets continue
names continue
lights continue

V
Haunted by
damp rhyming
A hovering of wings distant violins
An ancient buzz of bees
Honeysuckle bristling on the tongue
Bouquet of ashes worrying the nose
VI
continue
continue
continue
continue

VII
The Differed Music:
caress of whispers
weight of razored sleep
veiled glimpse of song
Oh sweetest rain
wash the night from me
VIII
continue

con
tin
contain

con
tune
you

c

--

--

--

--

IX
Won't be fingers
Won't be heartbeat
Won't be sense
Won't be city
Won't be
Won't be
Won't be





Copyright © 2001 Reginald Harris. All rights reserved. Used with permission of the author.

photo

Photo credit: Brian Lyles


Cave Canem's website manager, Reginald Harris is head of the Information Technology Support Department for the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland. A recipient of Individual Artist Awards for both poetry and fiction from the Maryland State Arts Council and finalist for the 2000 Agnes Lynch Starrett Prize, his first book, 10 Tongues (Three Conditions Press, 2002), was a finalist for ForeWord Magazine's Book of the Year Award and a 2003 Lambda Literary Award. His work has appeared in a variety of publications, including 5AM, African-American Review, Harvard Gay and Lesbian Review, Obsidian II, Sou’wester, and the Black Silk, Brown Sugar, Bum Rush the Page and Role Call anthologies.


Copyright © 1997-2008 by Cave Canem Foundation, Inc.

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