Michael Keshigian

Present Comfort
 
He stands in the open doorway,
a brisk breeze caresses his face.
There is a shadow cast
from a dried maple branch
of straight lines
dyed black upon the lawn
that resembles a stick man,
an apparition that points up
as if to designate its source.
He imagines himself the outline
penciled atop the green,
where the grass is cool and moist
as it brushes his skin,
where vagrant ants
and earthworms tickle his underside
when they course beneath.
The landscape is quiet otherwise.
He is content.
Vagrant clouds, like the years,
move rapidly over him,
close enough to the sun
to threaten and momentarily
dissipate his imprint.
The implication of limited time
bears down upon him.
There is nothing he might do
to stem the inevitable,
but to distract himself
with the magic about,
for the future is dark,
the present, light,
though it will yield no notice
when it dissolves him.
 
 

Michael Keshigian is the author of 14 poetry collections his latest, What To Do With Intangibles, published by Cyberwit.net. Most recent poems have appeared in Blue Pepper, Comstock Review, Jerry Jazz Musician, Smoky Quartz, Tipton Poetry Journal. Published in numerous national and international journals, he has appeared as feature writer in twenty publications with 7 Pushcart Prize and 3 Best Of The Net nominations.