The Furnace Man
barbecues
people for dinner
picks them up like logs
stokes his mouth full
doesn’t have to chew
the flames in his belly
flicker hot and fast
vaporize the bones
until nothing remains
no skin no eyes
no diamond necklaces
not even dreams.
But one day
the memories of the girl
he has just consumed
evade the heat
flip-flop in his mind
salty and fresh.
He separates them out
from everything that burns
and keeps them
in the cool of his head
just behind his left eye.
She swims along the beach
she and her brother
they bob up and down
in the waves
sink into the depths
imagine they are mermaids
shipwrecks seaweed
then the sky lifts them
into the blue
so much happiness it brings
this rise and fall rise and fall.
The Furnace Man
loves the girl’s memories
of the sea
will not burn them
plays them over and over
until he loves her too
and wishes she could
be there with him.
But that can never be
for he has gobbled her body
until there is none of it left
no flesh
no eyeballs
no eardrums
no pink fingernails
none of it.
All he can do
is drown
and the salt
cleanses the air
the water bathes
the red cheeks
and the laughter rises
from the water
like a song.
No comments:
Post a Comment