Death barged in
He has been here ever since.
In his Russian greatcoat,
slamming open the door
with an unpardonable bang,
and he has been here ever since.
He changes everything,
rearranges the furniture,
his hand hovers
by the phone;
he will answer now, he says;
he will be the answer.
Tonight he sits down to dinner
at the head of the table
as we eat, mute;
later, he climbs into bed
between us.
Even as I sit here,
he stands behind me
clamping two
colossal hands on my shoulders
and bends down
and whispers to my neck:
From now on,
you write about me.
“Death Barged In” reprinted with permission from Slamming Open the Door, © 2009 by Kathleen Sheeder Bonanno, published by Alice James Books, www.alicejamesbooks.org.
