Poem of the Moment

Let us for a moment call this pain by other words

Ask, How many roses does the hammer weigh
when it bears down on your skull?

Does the sword seem toothed like a toddler’s smile
or sharp as your first ice skates?

On a scale of anglerfish to northern lights
how bright are the flashes in your head?

When I touch this, here, which constellations
light the sky behind your eyes?

Would you say that pulsing is the flicker of a satellite
or the stubborn heartbeat of a newborn chick?

Ask, Can we for a moment make of beauty
the measure of our pain? and I will answer.

~ Dominik Parisien

Learn more about Dominik Parisien.