Mayday *
by Marian Shapiro
They’re falling
falling clusters
clusterbombs feathers
feathers blood ducks dropping
dropping dead shot
shot mid-air
mid-air blood showers
showers hail
hailstones blood
blood-streaked stones felled to earth
earthquake flood fire
fire pyre crematorium
crematorium where you
you mother father
fathermother of you
you friend wife husband dead
dead on these pages
pages of children pages
pages pictures poems
poems pages remembrances
remembrances of the fallen
fallen, all fallen
fallen all.
* The etymology of Mayday is from the French, “M’AIDER” or M’AIDEZ”, namely, “help me”.
Copyright 2023 Marian Shapiro
Marian Kaplun Shapiro is a psychologist and author of five books of poetry. "Mayday" was originally published in Players In The Dream, Dreamers In The Play, Plain View Press, 2007.
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