Saint Lawrence's Night, a Poem

Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night Over the Rhone,  1888, Oil on canvas

Saint Lawrence's Night

In this night of Saint Lawrence,
similar to other nights of mine,
under such weeping sky,
similar to other skies of mine,
I wonder lonely along the way.
Father, where are you? And where are you, Ma?
Where are you now, woman? And where the son,
that was denied? To whom avails
my existence, now that along the path,
flickering stars — like trembling, unhorsed,
desperate  chevaliers — are falling upon my head?

Princeton, New Jersey, August 2004

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