Susan Rich
History of a Kiss
And, if they are lovers –
is this the first kiss
or their mother’s final
sparkling sorrow?
The children with their hats
cast down
cannot recall
the man’s calm eyes, his animal coat
but all their lives
the taint of his cologne
cinnamon and thyme –
will keep them
seeking love’s illusions
committing all its crimes.
Susan Rich has received awards from the Academy of American Poets and PEN USA. She is the author of Cures Include Travel and The Cartographer’s Tongue. Recent poems will appear in The Antioch Review, Harvard Review, and Poetry International. Her collection, The Alchemist’s Kitchen, will be published next year.
Page(s) 18
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