Demanding
three
times the going & fair price
for the ripest
the vendor reveals
an accumulated disgust
for güeros
who appear
under his tarped stall
wedged
between the more permanent
Abarrotes del
Lago
& Vidrioelectrica
purveyors of mayoreo y menudeo:
sacks of amaranta & ajonjoli
amaranth & sesame
mounds of chicharrónes
baskets of blender seals valve stems
sickles & rasps
horsehair brushes
& speckled enamelware
Had you been with me
up on the hill
though
Vicki en la Loma
departamento uno
arched & tiled &
quaint
in its predictable decrepitude
Had you been with me
after yoga
on the stone floor
beside the ancient hearth
side-arm balance
half stick
downward-facing dog
Had you been with me
after a day’s third-world
discipline:
separating beans
bleaching sheets
beating dusty pillows
Had you been with me
as I scoured
&
soaked
with agua purificada & microdyn
& massaged
the single green
& peachy breast
of my deepest northern fancy
Had
you been with me
beside my sink
as I honed
the borrowed knife
& prepared
to drive
through the unguent
mountain air
to slide in
&
down
under the enticing
& fibrous flesh
Had you been with me
as I plunged
into the mango’s
indigenous all
hoping to avoid
the virgin’s own clavicle
hoping
to avoid
the submerged bone
that impedes
most fruition
Had you been there with me
you would have known:
humiliation
is always the first price
of poetry
& you would have known too
just how glad I was
to pay
& how grateful I am
to keep on paying