VERSE
Hoeppner, Ed
ED HOEPPNBR IgOR TIlI~ MONAMCil'S TIIANSPAUItgN~' LII,'ig$ Before we tore the last wall down, we sat and stared out the empty window at the shingles and bones we had thrown from the roof and...
...Somewhere, a tiger lily flings its petals to the wind...
...Weeks later, as we picked shark's teeth and coral from the sandstone cliffs above the lake, we found the chrysalis hanging stiffly from a bit of milkweed...
...Listen...
...She was limp, her wings folded back, when he carried her off in the wind...
...ED HOEPPNBR IgOR TIlI~ MONAMCil'S TIIANSPAUItgN~' LII,'ig$ Before we tore the last wall down, we sat and stared out the empty window at the shingles and bones we had thrown from the roof and the grains in the heavy oak door that sparked in the sunlight...
...Many fly south...
...Touching, finally, they shuddered...
...The male waited, fluttering slowly, like water, above her...
...Under the emerald cover, soldered with gold, we could see the slow movement of deep water...
...This one came to the lake, dropped gently to the surface and was turned to a copper feather by the August sun...
...The rain comes to meet the waves and receive its wings...
...Commonweal: 535...
...The monarchs came to test on the open hardwood floor like leaves fallen together from the same tree...
Vol. 102 • November 1975 • No. 18
