| ghosts
I.
I
want to build a monument to me
I want to build it so all the world can see
like
the Saracens' towers on the Amalfi coast
stones or words cobbled to endure
a
monument to the substantiality
of these flickering leaves
II.
here
I am left behind by all the ghosts
and you
in the corner stands the elephant
you left me
black
porcelain
cause I collected them
the Princess said
if
you place a rampant elephant with its butt to the door…
so on the desk
there are two more
your gift
dear ghost
I have your picture with you
and your dog
by my altar
a drawing of you on my wall
I wear your hat
and
that's that
actually there's not much of you in this room
oh, there's the
dog's blanket on the chair by the door
and the emptiness dear
ghost
put in a word for me in the beyond
and gees I miss you
now that
you'are gone
III. gatty
gatty paragatty
parasamgatty bodhi swaha you
who left across the water
wedded to fate
I dreamt you were long gone beyond
and
returned in the spirit of my dog friend
and he's so like you
so beautiful
grey
dark and blue
that I wept quite freely
thinking it was true gone
gone
gone beyond
gone way beyond
bodhi swaha
| 
