Something About Mary

Central air conditioning changed
the very character of Dominion Hills.
The houses were close together, and the
windows were open seven months a year.
When my father sneezed, the boys next door
yelled Bless You. When David practiced his violin,
it was better than when I practiced my trumpet.
When Frank rehearsed, traffic literally stopped.
If you argued, people heard it.
We could open the front door
and watch the evening thunder storms come
rolling in, and smell the rain through the screen.
And you could sneak a cigarette in your bedroom,
if you blew the smoke out the window screen.
See what you’re missing?

I have bagged my old manuscripts,
and stowed them in a closet.
I should rest; but I am restless.
Do I have any regrets? Well, yes.
I wanted to write something about Mary.
. . . What about English majors?
How does the subject, the contemplation
of Mary, affect poets? The same way
she affects artists and musicians:
she transports them to new levels.

Michael Truman Soper is a poet, essayist, and co-translator of 21st Century Chinese Poetry.