LOOKING IN THE MIRROR
Even a fly has a kind
of stature buzzing down the mouth of
a cannon.
It's easier to hear
the bones rattle while night bends
heavy as a lynching tree
under the weight of our
agreed up lies, some so old
I'm beginning to believe.
I'm in this garbage so long
I think of it as property
and lose all sense of smell.
By Ronald Wardall
Ronald Wardall (1937-2006)
Ronald Wardall (1937-2006) lived not only as a poet, he was a farmer, desk clerk, carpenter, bridge builder, salesman, lighting technician, actor, agent for the Army Security Agency, travel agent, publicity agent, educator, fund raiser, administrator, union leader, lobbyist and editor. His publications include Poetry, Field, Swink, Mudfish, and Skidrow Penthouse, among others. His work was included in Random House's POEMS OF NEW YORK. He was the recipient of the Slipstream Prize, the Dana Prize and a New York Foundation of the Arts Fellowship. His EYES OF A VERTICAL CUT was published in 2001 by Slipstream Press. He left behind a library of four thousand books and four poetry collections in manuscript. LIGHTNING'S DANCEFLOOR appeared posthumously from Rain Mountain Press.
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