August Tango

by Judy Katz-Levine

You're a forgiving cypress,

write songs named after our arguments.

We peel the mango in sultry twilight.

Lips before a thunderstorm.

Comes tomorrow, a door opens.

Luminous text-faces speak.

The caring moment after the operation -

that happened a year ago.

Brooding.

The luminous flesh of the mango.

There's a voice inside my voice.

It comes when no one watches.

An August tango remembers.

It was a year ago, and the operation lingers

in its effects.

Once we were taking our son to the rotating tire

at the playground.

Now he's peeling mangos for us.

* * * * *

"August Tango" is from Judy Katz-Levine's new book The Everything Saint, was first published in Ekleksographia.

Judy Katz-Levine's new book, The Everything Saint, has just been published by Word Press (available on Amazon). Of the book, the publisher says "The Everything Saint shows us the holy in the ordinary, and Judy Katz-Levine is a faithful guide to such wonders." Her recent poetry and translations have appeared in Writing In A Woman's Voice, Miriam's Well, Salamander, Blue Unicorn, Ibbetson Street, Event Horizon, Peacock Journal, and many other venues. Also a jazz flutist, she enjoys playing at jam sessions.