Cassandra talks in her sleep

by Annie Stenzel

But if you’re waiting for me

to Say things the way I used to

say things, don’t bother.

There’s no demand

for plangent images

from a soothsayer you won’t hear

and not every thing a seer says

is prophecy. As much as half

might be a plea for different weather

or a rumination on petulance

in the marketplace

and the price of peace.

Even so, sharpened pencils roll around

on the table, waiting; brushes

stand ready in the jar.

* * * * *

"Cassandra talks in her sleep" was first published in Café Review, was featured in Verse Daily, and is part of Annie Stenzel's poetry collection The First Home Air After Absence (Big Table Publishing, 2017). 

Annie Stenzel was born in Illinois, but has lived on both coasts of the U.S. and on other continents at various times in her life. Her book-length collection is The First Home Air After Absence (Big Table Publishing, 2017). Her poems appear or are forthcoming in print and online journals in the U.S. and the U.K., from Ambit to Willawaw Journal with stops at Chestnut Review, Gargoyle, isacoustic*, Pine Hills Review, Poets Reading the News, The Lake, and U n l o s t, among others. She lives within sight of the San Francisco Bay. For more, visit anniestenzel.com.