Lizzy Ke Polishan

catafalque

the night is only the night
until the darkness falls

apart. the wind is only the wind
until it enters your open mouth. don’t worry

about my breathlessness
—it is only my body

holding the air

your body just passed
through. how are you

flowering
coexistence, a plentiful

prayer
of paper 

lanterns shaped like suffering
loosening, falling

apart? are you

haloed? are you rolling
loneliness     away from the mouth   

of that cave?      give me
a river, i will jump in the water, lose

who i think   i am. i will
hold      your body, hang

it like      a garland
over this blue front door.

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Lizzy Ke Polishan’s recent poems appear in or are forthcoming from: Waxwing, Gulf Coast, Epoch, Passages North, Dialogist, Poet Lore, Rhino, petrichor and Black Warrior Review, among many others. She is the Managing Editor of River & South Review. She reads for Psaltery & Lyre, is a Guest Editor at Palette Poetry and is the author of the collection A Little Book of Blooms (2020). She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband.