Forgotten Temple

From the series, Japan Poems.

Moss-carpeted

stone steps

leading up to

the forgotten temple,

fewer and fewer guests

paying their respects

to these hallowed grounds,

a song of stately decay,

of bones and overgrown grass,

a rusted bell tolling absence

to the fount of prevailing silence—

Do forgotten temples

die from loneliness

or find themselves ennobled

by the ants carrying the sun

on their backs,

the stones conceiving immaculate whispers,

the trees bending down

to eavesdrop on the worms

itching for rain—

what exactly

do we mean

by keeping company?

The quiet life teems

beyond the flagged limits

of loneliness

or its mortally wrought concessions.

About John Biscello

Originally from Brooklyn, NY, writer, poet, performer, and playwright, John Biscello, has lived in the high-desert grunge-wonderland of Taos, New Mexico since 2001. He is the author of four novels, Broken Land, a Brooklyn Tale, Raking the Dust, Nocturne Variations, and No Man’s Brooklyn; a collection of stories, Freeze Tag, two poetry collections, Arclight and Moonglow on Mercy Street; and a fable, The Jackdaw and the Doll, illustrated by Izumi Yokoyama. He also adapted classic fables, which were paired with the vintage illustrations of artist, Paul Bransom, for the collection: Once Upon a Time, Classic Fables Reimagined. His produced, full-length plays include: LOBSTERS ON ICE, ADAGIO FOR STRAYS, THE BEST MEDICINE, ZEITGEIST, U.S.A., and WEREWOLVES DON’T WALTZ.

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