maria negroni/ tr. anne twitty

(as if I wanted to know who you are and at the same time
didn’t want at all)

do I see a beatific smile before me
or a rictus of suffering?

I begin to perfect
the idea of your death
eat and run etcetera

god knows
what tableau vivant we settle into
what stagedoor johnnies
of yours

I imagine you as a child faint rose before that image
grow sentimental as if I watched you walk
medieval pavements (the gothic quarter
of Barcelona)
                                 oh I’m a woman of the world
                       “that distempered lute”
           Chicago’s Ballinger
  Olivia de Havilland

           –forgive me–the very thought of you
           and a big fat tear slips out

Maria Negroni, LA JAULA BAJO EL TRAPO/CAGE UNDER COVER