Gemini spacewalk
I was out there
with the flag
and the mission instructions
for the e.v.a.
on my sleeve
but I fell behind schedule
caught by the blue arc
of sky and ocean
against the black
a hurricane-stirred
cappuccino cloud
covered the gulf of mexico
except for the transparent
flea of the florida peninsula
even the small
drops of ice
from the coolant tank
formed perfect worlds
and I thought
of trey’s letter
from the 365 us marine
helicopter squadron
a fortnight spent cleaning the aircraft
cleaning weapons
watching dolphins and gulls
chase the ship
days spent writing letters
thinking of mary jane
listening to the shirelles
thinking of home
then back ashore to the hot tent city
of the Da Nang airbase
the talk of operation
rolling thunder
towns with colonnades
balustrades
overlooking wide
rain-soaked boulevards
that could be louisiana!
just think now
the space
between hanoi and new orleans
would be how many
arc minutes
measured by the fingers
of my outspread hand?
Learning the t
braided light
from the garden’s abandoned bath
outside the room’s single window
danced like spinning skipping ropes
across the ceiling
I saw those waves of braided light
catch your mirrorwork skirt
lying on a carpet covered with pins
left by the room’s previous tenant
in the quiet afternoon
I found the soft Hindi t of your name
while your hands spoke an accent
I have yet to learn and will never master
I’d left Chaucer’s Troilus & Criseyde on the back porch
the wind took the book over the far mountains
Script kiddy
phones i love them all
pcs too & macs
especially macs running OS X
because OS X is really unix
you know?
