My shadow leaks from me and pools
on the sidewalk where anyone
might splash it with heavy footfall.
The wind today is so clumsy
it ripped a seam, allowing
a drizzle of dark to weep from me
as though it were homeless and vague.
The day otherwise seems innocent.
Yes, the sneers of politics sicken
trees already plagued with insects
from Asia, fungus from Europe,
and our homegrown air pollution.
Yes, my friends are dying off, leaving
spoor that puzzles the village dogs.
Still, I mourn my bleeding shadow
and wish I could scoop it up
and return it to its function,
which is to help define me
in moments of sun-swept doubt.
Dribbling shadow in public
isn’t like Orpheus losing
his head, but it hurts my spirit
to see how casually I disperse.
I duck into a shop and hope
the diffused light stops the seepage.
Maybe when the afternoon clouds
arrive I can safely go home,
leaving whatever dark I lost
to evaporate overnight.
William Doreski
William Doreski has published three critical studies and several collections of poetry. His work has appeared in many print and online journals. He has taught at Emerson College, Goddard College, Boston University, and Keene State College. His most recent book is Riding the Comet.
Edward Michael Supranowicz
Edward Michael Supranowicz is the grandson of Irish and Lithuanian/Russian/Ukrainian
immigrants. He grew up on a small farm in Appalachia. He has a grad background in painting
and printmaking. Some of his artwork has recently or will soon appear in Fish Food, Streetlight,
Another Chicago Magazine, Door Is A Jar, The Phoenix, and The Harvard Advocate. Edward is
also a published poet who has had over 700 poems published and been nominated for the
Pushcart Prize multiple times.