––starting with a line by Jean de Sponde
Give me a place to stand, Archimedes said...
The x-ray tango begins. We all stand,
lift our arms to Lords of the shadow standard.
They call out, "Show more." It's a one-night stand.
Anaphores of poets are unveiled to standing ovations,
jealousies notwithstanding. And cellulite of pundits,
scars from rebuilt parts withstand the invention.
The nipple rings of history stand out in the gaze.
Sartre stood for "L'enfer, c'est les autres."
Will shadows spot the misunderstood, or know
who has stood with philosophers at Café de Flore,
who has inhaled Gauloises, exhaled upstanding isms?
Stand-in starlets, their implants revealed, cry,
and children stand who have tried and failed to fly.
Judith Terzi is the author of two chapbooks, The Road to Oxnard (Pudding House contest finalist, 2010) and Sharing Tabouli (Finishing Line, 2011). Her poetry has appeared widely in print and online and has been nominated for the Best of the Net and Best of the Web anthologies. She taught high school French for many years in Pasadena, CA where she currently lives and writes.
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