Where you are now I hope there are words.
When you hear them I hope they mean something.
In case you need it, the cave is entered by boat.
At one juncture there is a shore in the darkness.
You are allowed to disembark to view the stone
formations up close, using your recommended flashlight.
It is like this now. I am attendant to all
your desires, should you wish to send them.
I will stuff envelopes for days, ride trains
through unknown countries, sleep in open rooms.
I will wade deeper and go under.
From here,
©
is a New York-based artist and writer whose manuscript Phrasebook for the Unrequited Country was a 2009 semi-finalist for both the Walt Whitman and Beatrice Hawley Awards. Other poems from the manuscript have appeared in various journals, including Post Road, Salamander, and Agni Online. Armstrong is currently a Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Workspace Artist-in-Residence.
