Excerpt of From Another Day by Alex Lemon
XI
an unnamable glut twirls
through my blood
I watch fingertips of light
shear the murk toward noon
the rain turning velvet soft
the day ungloving suddenly
inside out with sunshine
that tangerines the puddles
pulpy & abuzz
with storm gatherings
inside me there is a clump of pearls
an unquenchable want
to take in as much as possible
before the air heaves immense
from me
cavernous & unbreathable
before this wet earth before
these hands this sickness before
me sickles of light in the air
everywhere sliced with sun
Alex Lemon’s Another Last Day will be published this spring by Milkweed Editions. He has published four poetry collections: Mosquito, Hallelujah Blackout, Fancy Beasts, and The Wish Book and two books of creative nonfiction, Happy: A Memoir and Feverland: A Memoir in Shards. He lives in Texas and teaches at TCU.
Wow. What a beautiful poem.