Poetry Magazine
[From Mars cruel god of war]
From Mars cruel god of war
The desire to tie the corpse to the chariot
And drag it around each morning,
From Mercury the idea to put a stop to that
And buy the body back.
Because everything sooner or later becomes a musical
Or a collectible card or figurine
Hitler or the Fierce Saladin
Dracula the Impaler
All stripped of any awareness of suffering:
There is no voice in stones
No word that turns to flesh or blood.
(At that auction held at Bolaffi,
Those intriguing heart-shaped or "C" postmarks
Stamped after their arrival in Florence
On two letters sent from the field to the family
Of a student volunteer at Curtatone.)
Source: Poetry (December 2007).
Poem Categorization
SUBJECT Social Commentaries, History & Politics, War & Conflict, Crime & Punishment
POET’S REGION Italy
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