Jennifer Firestone

O Beautiful
 
She walking wallowing in private thoughts gallantly the buildings publicly affront
her view, achoo she privately sneezes and publicly spreads her contagion walloping
the handsome man viewing his print news waltzing past the private seat of the efficient
eatery the public watching their clocks and swallowing she wells up. O beautiful for
spacious skies! She walking privately in thoughts assessing public records of the earthen
wall originally erected under her walk and the slaves who helped mount it and the slaves
who could be traded there along with the wares whereabouts she walked endlessly though
bound to the maze enveloped in an oily wallet she privately hungry and distressed though
dressed adequately and O Beautiful! O! Wallowing, walking that good ol’ buttonwood
tree with the first blood embers. God shed his grace! Swallow the country pride burning
in their pockets where O here the Bill of Rights was erected and whose rights are erected
and the buildings selected to fill her view she publicly walks in this very private moment
walloping the sharp edges and lines, swallowing monuments buzzing with business
scintillating sleek privately disdaining publicly remaining. For spacious skies for
spacious skies. And the tide rises and the business rises and the tide rises and the
business rises and the public pushed to a northern spot and the businesses washed them
there and their homes long gone and she a song private always the people pushed and
pushed and the walls of glass aligned around the water walling calling
O Beautiful! O!
 
 
 
Jennifer Firestone is the author of Flashes (Shearsman Books), Holiday (Shearsman Books), Waves (Portable Press at Yo-Yo Labs), and from Flashes and snapshot (Sona Books). She is the co-editor of Letters To Poets: Conversations about Poetics, Politics and Community (Saturnalia Books), and an assistant professor of literary studies at Eugene Lang College (The New School). She lives with her family in Brooklyn.