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Night Life
Darkness
begins with the bats
who hang in our attics by day
and stream into the dusk just before
the geckos whose skins are as pale as souls adhere
themselves to the smooth planes on the porch where moths
are drawn to the lamp that burns beside the locked door while foxes
come out of their dens by the park with tails curled high and their noses
pressing the air for a scent that might lead to any of the houses
where we sleep with an owl holding to the power line
in the alley with its moon face turning
toward the freeway hum
from traffic sleeping
on its wheels.
Seen in Passing
Why the man was crawling
across the grass
wasn’t obvious until
he raised his left leg
to reveal the stump
where his left foot had once been.
The magazine he wanted
eluded him as he stretched
an arm and twisted
where he lay
beneath a shade tree
with his pack of belongings
resting slack and open.
His face darkened beneath a shock
of blond hair that set off the red
on the T-shirt he wore,
and he seemed not to see
anyone passing by, simply
easing himself up
by an elbow
while extending the leg
almost in a pose
more suitable to yoga
than reaching out
for something that would pass
the time, when time
was all he had in place
of what he’d lost.
Sanctuary
Perhaps the tail-light goes out
on the car you can hardly afford,
or the exhaust pipe rattles
to warn the police
you are on your way to a job
so an officer approaches
and has to report you
for good behavior. It has been
thirteen years since you crossed
the desert, without ever
being anybody’s problem
except the law’s. The system,
as broken as your third-hand vehicle,
says you should go back
to where you came from
while the sun is going down
behind Southside Presbyterian
where you sleep,
and it’s late in the Land of the Free.
David Chorlton was born in Austria, grew up in Manchester, England, and went to live for several years in Vienna before moving to Phoenix in 1978. Arizona’s landscapes and wildlife have become increasingly important to him and a significant part of his poetry. He had several shows of his paintings, and in recent years has enjoyed occasionally working in those places around Arizona that he and his wife visit. His Selected Poems from FutureCycle Press appeared in 2014.
Email: David Chorlton
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