We float through life
in a half–dream
of wild beasts and serenity
each thought
a winged mermaid
with feathers too heavy
for flight.
Our yellow towns
of sun–hardened straw
are too brittle
for habitation
so we dwell in the margins
of pages
sacred spaces
unwritten and patient.
About the Author: Margarita Engle is the Cuban–American author of books about the island, most recently The Surrender Tree, Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom (Henry Holt & Co., 2008). The Poet Slave of Cuba (Henry Holt & Co., 2006) received many honors, including the American Library Association's Pura Belpre Medal, an International Reading Association Award, and the Americas Award, presented at the Library of Congress.
Copyright © 2008 by Margarita Engle. The poem may not be reproduced in any form without the author's express written permission.