by Judy Kronenfeld
The people embracing each other, wiping
tears from their eyes, kneeling
to place roses and carnations,
the banner headlines, the when
is enough enough? Then the families
home alone after our national rituals,
the presidential visit. Now the children’s
bereft bedrooms, the stories slipping
down front pages and inside the newspaper,
then gone, now Absence just beginning
to take up residence, burrowing
in and in and in.
Judy Kronenfeld’s fifth full-length collection of poetry Groaning and Singing was published by FutureCycle Press in February, 2022. Previous books include Shimmer (WordTech, 2012) and Bird Flying through the Banquet (FutureCycle, 2017). Her poems have appeared widely in journals including Cider Press Review, MacQueen’s Quinterly, New Ohio Review, Offcourse, Slant, and Verdad.