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Tuesday, May 14, 2013

WITHOUT

by Shirley J. Brewer




Dancer Loses Foot in Boston Marathon Bombings
      from a newspaper headline

Smoke and glass,
hell sounds, her foot gone—
the amputation of a dream.
 
Just one day since
her toes painted
a promising pink.
 
She had asked for glitter;
severed sparkles
now rouged with blood.
 
They rush her off
without the limb that bore her
through every waltz, rumba, tango.
 
No time for farewells,
only a tourniquet
speaks for the ordinary
 
strapless-sandal-moments, a burst
of music—her footsteps light
on the safe and steady ballroom floor.

 
Shirley J. Brewer ( Baltimore , MD ) is a poet, educator, and workshop facilitator. Publication credits: The Cortland ReviewInnisfree Poetry JournalPearl, Comstock Review, Loch Raven Review, Passager, and other journals. Her poetry books include A Little Breast Music, 2008, Passager Books and After Words, 2013, Apprentice House/Loyola University. M.A. Creative Writing/Publishing Arts, University of Baltimore.