I, see, the, sightless, giant, lip, a, spit-filled, whistle,
Canvas, hood, pulled, tight,
Against, S,a,i,n,t, C,a,t,h,e,r,i,n,e, w,h,e,e,l,s, of, cold.
He, shrieks, a, single, note,
Tumbles, it, windward,
Rakes, at, our, ears, with, a, metal, reed,
Fog, venting, from, his, nostrils;
His, gob, of, sound,
Dropped, at, our, feet:
A, key, kicked, into, a, gutter.

Snow, paves, his, forehead,
Freights, his, pockets,
Feathers, his, l,a,c,e,l,e,s,s, shoes.

Too, small, for, sleet-stung, eyes, to, scan,
A, scrawled, card,
Asks, direction;
No, one, proffers, arm, or, word.

Buses, lit, like, reading, rooms,
Taxis, sweating, heat,
All, a,d,u,m,b,r,a,t,e, d,i,s,t,a,n,c,e.
The, giant,
In, the, dirty, coat, hunches, his, thick,
Shoulders, in, the, d,a,r,k.

Note from the poet: This is a “comma poem”—a form first defined by Jose Garcia Villa.

©2012, Jesse Glass

Jesse Glass is an American poet who lives in Japan. He is the publisher of Ahadada Books, and a professor of literature and history at Meikai (Bright Sea) University in Chiba, Japan. His poems are online in many places, including BeeHive, Ubuweb and PennSound.

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