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The Artwork of Old Masters | Poem

The Artwork of Old Masters


The light above the radio,

By the dusty terrapin turtle,

Forever crawling over the artwork of

Old Masters:

The banners of love, peace, friendship,

Flying from the back of trees,

The Thunderbird flame low to see,

The old Norwegian migrant write his last letter

Home;

The truck hauling granite,

Electrical gridwork everywhere,

Plastic by the side of the road,

The ruler by the book,

The scales by the window,

Pools in the forest black as ink,

The recorded voices of Shamans?

The broken wing of a butterfly,

And the undied dead in the streets...


- Michael Warren Eliseuson