Evening

and the slow

processions of desire

pause on the corner, pause where as boys

we whistled our tunes

watching the girls pass by.

Who were we then, as we are now,

mysteries, fading? How many

faces hidden on the page

can you pick out by seeking?

I thought at eight my bed was a boat

allowing me to escape. Nightly

I dreamed it, tucked in.

They took me to the door

having packed me a bundle, saying

"go on if you want." How yellow

the hall was, how endless!

And later, on freights

climbing the grades headed west --

bare-headed, alive, in the heat...

Beside women, I remember.

Caressing their limbs, I remember.

Touching the bodies of those

who might be my daughters

I say my goodbyes to the world.