Letter to Harper from Halfway to the Horizon

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Letter to Harper from Halfway to the Horizon

 

Dear Stephanie: No one connects here, and no matter
how resolutely we trudge forward, ignoring spinal fusions
and attacking hearts, the line skips lightly ahead, mocking us,
I think, in that way only the ineffable may claim. Looking
out, I see a lone wren, clouds filtering the stars, and strands
of barbed wire looped like question marks around cedar
stumps, punctuating the day’s greeting. No answers there,
only more inquiries blanching under the sun. But this
is my febrile landscape, not your lush green headed by
gray. Nothing matters, or, everything’s imperative.
In this gnarled season I can’t tell which, although
the vulture ripping into a squirrel carcass on my
suburban front lawn tells me something ain’t quite
right. Full or empty, the glass is still a glass, despite
my propensity for seeking more, whether cava or beer
or yes, enlightenment. I fear this reveals too much
about me, and wonder if I should draw the shade or
keep tugging it higher, admitting more light. Have you
ever noticed that half often amounts to less the closer
you get to it, each portion diminishing, divided by two,
and again, until only a thin shadow vaguely resembling
the original shape remains? Perhaps this is how we’re
meant to exit as failures on this field. The horizon’s
still there, red stroking green, clouds feathering in,
and maybe if we keep walking we’ll reach it in a sunburst
of doves and glittering red dahlias. Yeah, right. In the
meantime, let’s multiply our losses and sculpt another
morning truer than its source, stronger than its media. Our
optimism has already blown this joint. What else have we
got to lose? I remain, as ever, yours in insolence, Bob.

 

Originally penned in January 2017, “Letter to Harper from Halfway to the Horizon” was published in MockingHeart Review in May 2018. I’m reading with MockingHeart founder and editor-in-chief Clare L. Martin, along with Bessie Senette, at 7:00 this evening, October 20, at Malvern Books in Austin. Come on by, if you’re able!

31 thoughts on “Letter to Harper from Halfway to the Horizon”

  2. Reflections galore here – the half becoming less and less is strangely appealing … the less in the glass, the more space to add something … likewise for the bookshelves … maybe even for certain relationships … politicians, too, if we get lucky.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓

  6. Thank you Robert for this glorious poem, and your words felt like invisible X-rays filling my lungs with quasar’s of illuminating energy.
    “Full or empty, the glass is still a glass, despite
    my propensity for seeking more, whether cava or beer
    or yes, enlightenment. I fear this reveals too much
    about me, and wonder if I should draw the shade or
    keep tugging it higher, admitting more light.”

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

  12. Pingback: Letter from the Other Side of Halfway | SLHARPERPOETRY

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