The Escape, a Poem from "Jersey Blues"

'The Hunted Slaves', Richard Ansdell, Oil on canvas, 1861, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool.

 

The Escape

Escape,
like the slave
from the tantalizing plantation
in the sultry, pitch-black night.

Escape,
like the lost maid
from the bitter alcove
under the round moon.

Escape,
like the evening shadows,
from the reddening hill-sides
of the dying soul.

And as you run away,
it occurs to you how there is
no shelter in this world,
nor in the other.

Princeton, New Jersey, April 2006

From the collection Jersey Blues, also available on iBookstore,  NOOK Book, and Amazon Kindle.