sometimes, horses
BY HELEN VITORIA
the last time I thought of you was on an airplane to Chicago
beneath, I saw the Pennsylvania landscape in snow and I swear I saw horses
kneeling in fields, drinking at frozen basins, running uneasy in their own silence
I’ve grown accustomed to holding my breath through any pleasure or pain
sometimes, I understand the plight of horses
their need to use what they have Turning fear into power is not easy
but they fool you and with their weight pin you against the stall door when you least expect it
if only for a moment
what soreness in their jawline the bridle must cause
when something unexpected touches their face they twitch
twitch at steel spurs on ribs, at the feel of leg on leg
days when I am rereading fragments of Seferis
these are the things that I cannot forget:
The snow and the water frozen in the hoofmarks of the horses
the last time I thought of you was on an airplane to Chicago
beneath, I saw the Pennsylvania landscape in snow and I swear I saw horses
kneeling in fields, drinking at frozen basins, running uneasy in their own silence
I’ve grown accustomed to holding my breath through any pleasure or pain
sometimes, I understand the plight of horses
their need to use what they have Turning fear into power is not easy
but they fool you and with their weight pin you against the stall door when you least expect it
if only for a moment
what soreness in their jawline the bridle must cause
when something unexpected touches their face they twitch
twitch at steel spurs on ribs, at the feel of leg on leg
days when I am rereading fragments of Seferis
these are the things that I cannot forget:
The snow and the water frozen in the hoofmarks of the horses
Helen Vitoria’s work can be found and is forthcoming in many online and print journals: elimae, MudLuscious Press, PANK, Rougarou, FRIGG Magazine, kill author, Dark Sky Magazine and others. She is the author of six poetry chapbooks and a full-length poetry collection: Corn Exchange forthcoming from Scrambler Books, Spring 2012. Her poems have been nominated for Best New Poets & the Pushcart Prize. She is the Founding Editor & Editor in Chief of THRUSH Poetry Journal & THRUSH Press. Find her here: http://helenvitoria-lexis.blogspot.com/.
