Blue Angel
I was flying through the blue when the first shot
tore through my shoulder.
I landed hard, and was shipped back to the studio
wrapped in a garbage bag and packed in dry ice
so I wouldn't spoil.
You broke my white wings
and stuffed them with rags and cotton.
You sliced my feathery hide off
and boiled me in a large pot
filled with water and dish detergent to cut the grease.
You scraped off what was left with a dull knife
until I was clean, so clean that not even an insect
could find a snack. You bleached the bones
and stuck them together with superglue
around a wooden frame, and pulled on the feathered hide
like a shirt. Then you sprayed me with gloss
or a satin coat of clear acrylic.
Later, the art critic came and saw me
mounted in the gallery, my wings glistening blue,
and declaimed, "The angel is associated with peace
and its brood normally consists of two eggs.
A study of numerology, as applied to angels,
will add even more insight for you."
There was a musician in the gallery
who was sampling angel cries in his synthesizer.
The critic observed, "The mournful song of the angel
is an indication of water;
the voice of the angel is the rain song.
Their feathers are used in Native American prayer sticks."
I am drifitng through the blue with a message,
my wings extended in simulated flight,
each muscle and tendon arranged
in an esthetically pleasing pose,
and a balsa-wood pole through my belly to keep me upright.
FOR BLANE DE ST. CROIX
– tony barnstone
"Blue Angel" first appeared in Tony Barnstone's collection, Impure.