Blackbirdan online journal of literature and the artsFall 2018  Vol. 17 No. 2
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an online journal of literature and the arts
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back LISA RUSS SPAAR

St-Germain Madrigal

Nose the unstoppered bottle,
Old World perfume, vulnerable
plea of the mourning dove,
fragile thrum, may blossoms

gathered, then macerated in casks.
Sweet elder, star blossom, known also
as the Judas tree, its shuttle seedpods
dangling like a body in the wake

of a decision. Pour two capfuls
into champagne, dulcet
bitter thread, sex-bite. Swallow.
The way a throat thickens, naming loss.

Eschew pronouncing possessive nouns.
Take gladness in not counting down.