-the smiling girl in '35-

the smiling girl stands at the trunk of a tree between

the hanging man and a space of air but one time her width.

the bark of the bough creeks like a weathered boat, the wind

becomes a breeze, becomes a whisper and the swaying slows its pace.

the hanging man is rootless, save from the top, his tattered

overalls attesting to his station, the warrant fast-tracked and irretrievable,

unstoppable and eagerly accomplished.

––I'm left searching for the smiling girl on the day before the tree's incident

who may be found tucked quietly behind her school desk most likely wearing

the same summer dress.

––I'm left searching for those who retrieved Rubin Stacy cut from the tree

and dropped to the earth when all is done at the empty staging when the curtain is drawn.