Chernobyl Wedding
They hose down each cherry tree. Hose down
the dogs. Mow the cemetery. Peel back the earth.
The guests arrive - they hose down the bus.
The priest wears a mask. His faithful turn
to hymn number nought. No one mentions
sickness or health. The groom bends to sign
in a flourish of white. No witness has seen it.
Bells in the steeple swing without tongues.
Instead of confetti - foam. The bride’s bouquet is
caught mid-flight. And hosed. In the marquee
they scrape at pristine plates. The cellists
draw bows across cello-shaped air. Father rises
to say nothing. The best man stands to deliver
no joke. A Marshal marshals them tight to a lens -
orders a grin. No film. There is a black
bin-bag the gifts go straight in. He hands her a rose
in its hazard-tape bow. Their cake is sleek and black
and melting. Past a colonnade of poplars drenched
in foam Wife and Man run. They are pulling them down.
Guests huddle in their wake. Wave at an empty street.
Page(s) 44
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