Black Lilies
Flensing words, slicing deeper: all, nothing,
red to redder. Their skin, paling to nothing.
I speak today but you hear yesterday.
Black lilies in the chill of nothing.
Drifted apart, the two halves reconcile.
Yellowed, whitened. Older. Both stitched in nothing.
How many words have we lost to morning? Shredded
syllables sparring for sound. The nothing of nothing.
A coated voice, turquoise and calm, spreading across the room.
Buttered light. Pleasantries, unfolding. You, being nothing.
The language of night sleeps unformed in my bed.
I remember your hand on my cheek; flesh forgets nothing.
* * *
Another near-ghazal, “Black Lilies” first appeared in ISACOUSTIC* in January 2018.
O at the Edges 
I really like this. Also, flensing is a great word.
That photo though is creepy. 🙂
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Thanks, Merril. I have to agree with you on flensing and the photo!
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🙂
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Very well written. Love all the images and the musicality of them.
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Thanks very much!
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You are welcome.
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Agree …
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Thank you.
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I was intrigued with how you used the word “nothing” repeating in the poem, and how you made nothing feel like something…..
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Thanks, Ivor. That repetition is crucial to the ghazal form; they key is choosing a word that bears repetition.
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Ok, another form of poetry for Ivor the learner….
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“I remember your hand on my cheek; flesh forgets nothing.” I love this! Wonderful poem Robert
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Glad you liked it. Thank you.
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Robert, this is truly beautiful!
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Thank you, Holly!
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You are most welcome!
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Nothing is always something. (K)
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It certainly is in my world!
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