walks off the water
and lungs collapse
all over town.
The breathless city
goes dark
with burned retinas
as a population of feet
stampede into the sea
On a palanquin lofted
by four garlanded men,
the pot-bellied Elephant God
leads a seaward procession.
Cheryl Snell’s books include two collections of poetry and a novel, Shiva’s Arms. More than two hundred of her poems and stories have appeared in print and online journals, and she is a three-time Pushcart Prize nominee.