Still Life with Oleanders
       

in the sea, a face recedes under weather and light. the rocks
combed and a violet meadow described as vanished.

when the subject is removed there is the illusion of endlessness—
the tonal sky slips away.

northern light dissolves. to the right a figureless crane plied
from its shadow.

at its bottom, the forest is framed—each confusion
drawn back.

as if a screen, the foliage camouflages the house, the house
forgotten instinctually.

the oleanders become associated with an image, the stems
faded late in each version.

cut from composition the pattern disassembles. when positioned
horizontally, depth appears without shape.

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Copyright © 2022 Sara Lupita Olivares All rights reserved
from Black Warrior Review
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission