Island of a Thousand Tales

A Homage to Leonard Cohen

by Sherry Shahan


Radish tops sprout ruffles
in plastic ice cube trays,
set upon a windowsill
by tins of ginger flowers.

Children are the heroes
bathed in seaweed from the harbor,
sharing salty fish and oranges
with wizards and Siddhartha.

And I want to dance with Marianne
among lilacs and in heartbreak.

And I want to dance with Leonard
beneath pigeons on telephone wires.

But all of that is gone now.
So I dance in cardboard boxes,
sinking in the soil of my mind.

Gypsy boys toss tea leaves.
The sun bakes Monday bread.
Shipwrecked girls are shackled
in flames of Anima Sola.

And I want to dance with Marianne
in rags from thrift store closets.

And I want to dance with Leonard
in his lonely timber tower.

But all of that is gone now.
So I dance in cardboard boxes,
sinking in the soil like a stone.

                         
* * * * *

Sherry Shahan lives in a laid-back beach town in California where she grows carrot tops in ice cube trays for pesto. Her novel in verse PURPLE DAZE: A Far-Out Trip, 1965 highlights a tumultuous year in history. She holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and taught a creative writing course for UCLA for 10 years. www.SherryShahan.com