Arsenic Lobster poetry journal
Issue Nine
Winter 2005
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MIDDLE LIFE (II)
Rob Cook

A man removes his heart
so he can sleep

There is no sound where his heart was

You look into his ears
where the snow’s already begun

If you stop breathing
you can hear his heart
floating in a glass of Polident

It does not cry or sing
but copies the moon anyway

You build a fire in his mouth
and huddle there,

eating the embers that lead through the forest,

the miles of his voice
buried by dogs

You draw water from his jawline to survive

and in his eyes two men remove
each other’s flesh with love,

the songs katydids make chewing holes
in each other for a place to rest

| Home | Issue Nine | Contents | Contributors | 2005 Pushcart Nominees | Archive | Submission | About Us | Contact Us |