' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' 'The Soul Goes For A Stroll(For Scarlett) Poem by Dónall Dempsey

My Uncle sleeps
with pursed lips

as if kissed
by a dream.

Perched upon this kiss
a butterfly sits

as if an Uncle's lips
were the most natural

place for a butterfly
to rest

or as if
it were an illustration

of the soul
(a symbol)

in a magical book
that explained such things.

Outside the trees
breathe gently

inhaling & exhaling
a soft whisper of wind.

Bees carve a map
out of the air

for other bees to see.

Out on a limb
two birds sit & chit chat.

A fox(unseen)
passes by

as if it had never
been.

A big big bug
topples off the top

of a tiny stone
onto its back

wriggling its arms & legs
as if it were trying to swim

through the currents
of its fear.

One of the gossiping birds
sees him as a tasty treat.

Eats him.

Inside the house's
El Greco shadows

a kitten
exploring the newness

of the world it finds
itself in

jumps onto
the sleeping statue

of an Uncle
with a butterfly

perched upon
its lips.

Kitten tumbles ooops
into my Uncle's crotch

before climbing the moutainside
that is his chest.

Takes a swipe
at the soul

pretending to be
a butterfly

just as my Uncle
awakens to this reality

& his soul
flits just

out of reach

between the fireplace
& the mantlepeice.