Three Poems by James E. Roethlein

When She First Knew a Man.

A sigh
for her husband,
moaning, as he knew her,
her wide eyes, silently asking
for more.


The Flower-Scented Air

The flower-scented air,
masks a road of broken glass and thorn,
and I, the fool,
walked it barefoot for miles,
unwilling to take a safer road,
for fear of the pain of repentance.


Poets

We, the mythmakers and dreamers of dreams,
keep a sleepless vigil
in the lonely watches of the night.
Pacing the floor
in the silent realm of our room,
we give voice to the inexpressible thought,
speaking of patients etherized upon a table
and how she bowed to her brother,
of Daddy; of crystal stairs and the road not taken.
The world may sleep soundly tonight,
knowing that a poet is wide awake.
For it is said the world will end,
when the last poet awake, falls asleep.

{Poetry by James E. Roethlein}