Monday, November 23, 2009

dusk on the way home

dusk on the way home
saw Alberto at Porta Blu
afternoon classes underway
seekers of art ability
drawing circles, mixing color
perusing modern ways

walking back in evening’s cool air
on a narrow way into Piazza Navona
i pass the minister of the interior
a glint of recognition in his eye
in dusk darkness and alley shadow
i see him only when we are face to face
he lives around the corner from me
usually his guards are in formation
and then it is easier to see him coming

leaving the piazza i was distracted
and forgot to look again at the beauty
passing earlier today i paused a while
in the sight and scent of that grand piazza
to admire Bernini’s work again
the two smaller fountains with mythical characters
the larger splashing waters in the center
tribute to four great rivers
topped by an Egyptian obelisk
reaching above all
tomorrow i may look again

now it’s to home
too cool without a jacket anyway
a few paces before Campo dei Fiori
the tune Autumn Leaves from the familiar sax
of a group urging coins from tourists
floats in the air, ricochets off cold stone
where, as years pass changes are small steps taken
seems that autumns are reluctant to come and go

2 comments:

Annie said...

Hi Jack,

So, you are in Italy! I love these poems of your time there, as much as I love poems of your time in Ohio. It's wonderful to get to live in two places, and to have the sensitivity to capture the feel of each of them. Did you actually post Particles in Space while you were in the air? (Now, don't be mean to me, if you find the question to be silly!)

jack sender said...

yes, i was in space when i posted that, and either Neil Armstrong is moonlighting as a flight attendant or a guy that looks a lot like him is.