don't move across the snow in a rush
the heat is too much, the sweat blinds
a pond traversal, fates irreversible
less important than focus, more valuable
than a stare, a face that tells a story too
long for a single volume, too complex
for words; with a poet out of the country
remembering a past of the present place
not lived, not dead: purgatory conspiracy
a trap for souls without conviction
convicted without a trial for crimes
against good health and strong taste
crawl: the gait of the patient; amble:
the rate of the satiated; do not make jokes
at the expense that you cannot afford
but don't check your wallet before saying
exactly what is on your mind: not words,
of course, obviously you didn't reckon
on finding this, did you? slow down,
get serious, it's the disease that's on the page.
Roman Ryan 