“Herakles with Lionskin”
Hellenistic Sculpture
Photo at theoi.com
remind me how I tore into two tons of tragedy
when Hercules girded my infirmity in lionskin
and my veins exploded in splatters of laughter
at reclining danced-out shapes
daring to eat grapes in the lavender flames of affluent wreckage
did you know blood and gasoline both smell like urine
was I crazy or drunk
on ominous drips from slow-melting ice sculptures
did I kill you
or save you from saving yourself
when I pulled your fear and mine into broken glass weeds
remind me if you live
I can’t hear my memory’s voice
for the pounding liquid hammers in my vascular head
and the noisy cavitation of my shudders
Poesy plus Polemics 