Two to speak loud and clear for all and too many to hear;
secrets of an alcove and two more join for some chatter;
it is a talk show of shaky lives, with no hope for redemption.
Their stay is brief, as their story is but a mere summary
of fantasies, tales shared without concern for safety;
relieved by the gang of all sizes and generations
who take their spots, still warm, of their icy presence.
There they build substitutes for lives not begun, illusion of mirages,
splattering paragraphs with no rhyme upon the walls all around,
absent souls in shells of bodies echoing of hollow words,
clamoring of laughter, anger, gossip, and shallow harmony.
Others will come, telling of the same romance for the unmoved ears,
until doors shut, night fall, silence overtakes the frigid arena
of a theater where reality remains scarce and death prevails.
Fabrice Poussin teaches French and English at Shorter University. Author of novels and poetry, his work has appeared in Kestrel, Symposium, The Chimes, and many other magazines. His photography has been published in The Front Porch Review, the San Pedro River Review as well as other publications.
