the parks of New York

on some nights New York smells of





           this bench here is the one





the guy (Micheal) was dead





this mitten was lost last winter

               near the lake in Prospect Park

 



             this here button is for the pants

that no longer fit her





if by dead you mean still





the idea of eternal everafter              reminds me of 

the hanging tree in Washington Square 





late in the afternoon under the tree		 he died





this was a bad idea, but she





not all    ice cream is alike  	Hageen Daz does not

exist for example 





if by death you mean a sort of loss, transformation





he told me he could control the weather

it was as if it would never stop raining





the lady at the other end 

     of the suicide hotline was having lunch





injections are mandatory, it seems, in certain ER’s





serene was a word I could use for the river		

there over by the     broken glass and pigeons





the psychiatrist became afraid and asked me to sit with him





the drought had lasted two years	people were starting

to get arrested for watering their lawns





what you break in this life, you pay for 

in the next	he said





Astoria park has poor ground cover and is often muddy





he jumped from a bridge





if by dead you mean gave away         everything 

and spoke to god





in Brooklyn there is a small fragrant 

enclosed triangle of grass

        on Sundays music plays there softly





If by dead you mean gone, then yes, dead.