head in the gray

10/24/04

death passes her by
strobe flashing white streak screaming
and all she can do
is look up and smile
on this charcoal afternoon
made perfect for errands
soft Irish music
and sofa-bound excursions
to distant bookish destinations
it might even be a good time for
dying
but certainly not smiling,
most certainly not
as the ambulance speeds
past the beaming shadow of
a woman lost