Author: hinzadw

inbreeding the clipper

an osprey appeared in the mist
a falling meteorite into the harbor
almost unseen.
another soared twisting turning
outmaneuvering five crows giving chase.
a third skimmed to me
and became a beetle as it landed on my hand
large pincers for piercing fruit
eyes blood red and large for walking in dark shadows
serrated fangs for injecting venom
long antennae curled into smoke
reaching in my nose and oozing out my ears.
i put it in my mouth chewed and swallowed
so my children leave faint traces of its indigo exoskeleton
with each footstep

from swann park at sunrise
(designs adapted from the baltimore clipper were used to build slave-trade ships in the mid-19th century)

omnibus from govanstowne

the road heads down rather pretty in sunrise afterglow
out of shadows
steam rises from waiting horses
passengers each silent alone in chilly morning
relaxing for the jolting commute
jarring thundering down to town
where steeples and towers and cobbles
are a red orange brown and grey
from green and purple groves and gardens
sounds of metal hammering steam and shouting join bird songs
around the channel to deep oceans
where markets are made.
now jump down and walk
with women and men whose names you may know

york road at sunrise
(omnibus service started in 1844 to outlying hamlets)