Tag: Peru

poetry

closing up shop

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closing up shop

first they lock away the luxury goods –
alpaca fine knits
the real jewelry
and fancy watches –
things that might be worth smashing for

then they put up whatever barriers
they can afford –
a web of packing tape at Sunglass Hut
metal grille at Hugo Boss
clear plastic sheeting pieced together with tape at Coolbox
cerrado

the restaurants serve up whatever’s left –
3 dishes at the TGI Fridays:
babyback ribs
chicken-fried chicken
or Bucket of Bones,
all with mashed potatoes only

but these privations are so trivial
up here in the departures lounge
placidly sailing above the ticket counter chaos
out of sight far below
jammed with people who woke this morning
to learn the window for leaving had shut
each trying desperately to pry it open
just wide enough to slip through

poetry

inertia

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inertia

the urge to not force things to change
wanting to wait and see
favoring the distasteful known
over the cold metallic panicked taste
of uncertainty

willing the ball to roll itself on up the hill
deciding not to decide

poetry

erasing the Incas

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erasing the Incas

stone by painstaking stone
they dismantled the temples
then piled churches
onto the foundations

poetry

love in a time of uncertainty

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love in a time of uncertainty

when death hovers on the porch
and everything that usually matters
stands still
love means someone you can
show your fear
and speak its name out loud
someone who wants to
hold your hand anyway
someone who says
in all the swirl of unknown to-bes
look into my eyes
like when we’re dancing
maintaining our equilibrium
while the rest of the world dissolves
into a blur of bright color
and rhythmic noise
we’ll hold each other upright
smiling through the spin

poetry

Latin vs. Norteamérica

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Latin vs. Norteamérica

in Perú
plazas are a spot of shade and color
refreshing water tossed into air
benches to rest, watch the world, meet a friend
flowers to remind you the whole world isn’t barren
and a promise of salvation at one end

in America
plazas are strip malls

poetry

Tacna-Puno bus

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Tacna-Puno bus

little abuelita
in her thin grey braids
tied together at the tips
sensible shoes and thick nude hose
pink flowered dress
and bougainvillea-tinted cardigan
with a blue pocketed smock over top
brown lined face
and mostly toothless smile
you chatter on
and instead of according you
great respect as expected
folks mostly ignore you

why?

maybe they are crazy ravings
or maybe they were taught
not to speak to “Indians”