Ceiling Skirt Sky

Without meaning to betray you,
I have lifted your skirt
to the ceiling
and in this renewed sky
set my sun and moon and exhaled
three castles of clouds. Your pockets
will be good houses
for the gods, birds and perhaps
the occasional airplane. We cannot deny
the truth of how we are used
beyond even our absolute
imagination. With this thought,
I see you rearrange
all the carefully placed assemblies
to justify a smile--unfathomable
before in your eyes of shock,
when your head was haloed
by your glowing petticoat
backlit by the bulb. But now
you need no art to shine
beyond your impossible nudity.


by jerry gordon