Two Poems by Michael H. Brownstein

 

CLOUD VAPORS 

 

A shelf of clouds

opened in the new light

and the man on the patio

eating a fresh bagel

with room temperature feta cheese

studied it with wonder--

he saw the white lisp of dragon's breath,

a bouquet of periwinkle,

a collaboration between 

white hyacinth and white pim.

rhododendron, dahlia.

daffodil and calandiva

and then the familiar shape

of a lost friend,

his hand blistered and calloused, .

reaching for the petals of a white rose.

Then a great greyness blocked 

everything and in the perfect cool day,

the first snow of the season 

began to fall.

 

 

Individuality

 

My head eroding plaster,

my body milk:

the warm aroma of goat water from Montserrat 

flows through my blood lines

thin paste archives my baseline

the ruddy texture of fresh copper salves my bones

and everywhere but nowhere else

a fine line of fabric covers my skin.

Michael H. Brownstein’s latest volume of poetry, A Slipknot Into Somewhere Else was recently published by Cholla Needles Press (2018).