A Poem by Louisa Calio

Sky Openings Khartoum Sudan

by Louisa Calio

The night was totally still

empty of any artificial light or sound

as it rarely is in industrial countries

and although you complain

of these troublesome blackouts

the poor electrical connections in Khartoum

for me, so burdened with progress and stress

This was a reprieve--

the sky so close and black except for punctuating stars, I could nearly touch the diamonds

as you walk weighted beside me, an ancestral figure, head filled with thoughts of war

bent you were

with only your eyes touching the heavens.

You said, you didn’t want the law or politics anymore- what then would be next?

We wondered

as the sky brought its unspoken reply.

For once, we didn’t drop to the earthly plight

For once we felt -- the space--

interplanetary, stellar potential

the end of the Piscean Age

Pressing us to new life!

Louisa Calio award winning writer and Director of the Poets and Writers Piazza for Hofstra’s Italian Experience …also lives in Montego Bay Jamaica. This poem was the winner of the Barbara Jones Award for Poetry Trinidad and Tobago.

http://www.italianamericanwriters.com/Calio.html

The Summer Gazebo Readings feature 4 author/poets each Monday evening in June, July and August, 7 pm at Schoolhouse Green in Oceanside, NY. See the links to the right for our schedule and directions. Bring a lawn chair and come on down!