The Jersey shore of Italy,
no women topless by the water,
its air of humid modesty
hung heavily on Penny’s daughter
and heavier on her son. That night
in the square’s al fresco ring
its local pride, a bantamweight,
thrilled the mob by pummeling
a young Slovakian. At three
we woke to flashing lights and screams.
A Fiat parked two cars away
from ours sat swimming in flames.
Her son slept on. He wouldn’t believe
our news next morning: the scrubbed street shone.
Penny kissed me. “Go down, love,
you start the car. Then we’ll get in.”
Jay Rogoff
Jay Rogoff will publish Loving in Truth: New and Selected Poems with LSU Press in spring 2020. His six previous books include The Long Fault, The Art of Gravity, Venera, and Enamel Eyes, A Fantasia on Paris, 1870. His poetry and criticism have appeared in many journals, and he writes on dance for The Hopkins Review, Ballet Review, and other publications. He lives in Saratoga Springs, New York. (photo credit: Megan Mumford)
Also by Jay Rogoff (see all)
- Punta Marina - February 9, 2020
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