And As When
And as when the houses of Pompei
were covered in ash, heavy enough
to cause buildings to collapse,
and the pyroclastic flows,
mixtures of lava blobs and gas
ran through the city
faster than a horse could run,
the horses trapped in harness
in the stable, bodies perfectly
preserved, a child curled
underneath a mother,
a father stretching out his hand,
as they lay trapped in time
and still lay trapped in time,
so what happened between us
resembles something like
a city caught beneath the ash
and only empty spaces
where once people lived
and loved and kissed.
Look how thorough I am –
searching the Street of Balconies,
the Villa of Mysteries,
the Garden of Fugitives,
the House of the Faun.
I cannot let it rest. I pour
liquid plaster into every gap.
I watch the bodies rise.