Bildungsroman

by Deborah Svatos

I am neither here nor anywhere, 

seeking a place I belong 

as I glissade  

across Saturn’s halo rings 

and sift through  

silver luminescent strands 

in every moonbeam, 

my place undefined 

in a world submerged

under vermillion flame. 

 

I search vale and oasis, 

desert and hamlet 

for traces of what it means 

to be alive, 

imbue the contents of my heart  

into  

      every breath 

every word 

         every movement 

in hopes that some part of me 

will remain when 

the storms have abated. 

 

Everywhere I’ve been, 

fragments of lives 

I left behind 

remain irrevocable, 

haunting me when  

the moon looms pensive 

over quiet midnights, 

my binding tie to what was. 

 

My story’s always reaching an end  

and each time 

I grasp for something  

to cling to, 

always desperately hoping 

that at last I’ll be safe 

as the world falls to pieces again. 

< Previous: AskNotNext: Cherokee Seven >