Angelic, Summertime, Soaked. 3 Poems by Hiram Larew

Angelic

I am of you very --
         harked and widely
         truly hovered
         raised on twirls and wonders
My arms above are lifted towards you
	over flowing

And my heart is truly spread
         or split or stirred upon you
         beyond unending pieces

I am wings as much as 
         all above you
         above what may be surely 

I blaze upon your eyes that say  
         how flames may fling 
         as must our moths 
On fizzling air arrive
         and forward as can rise
         I fly unto you  

I am of you ever 
         in swept up breath 
         on shuddering time 
         as if you will me purely --
So radiantly scattered by
         or lifted high to craze 
	
For I am come to you as trumpets
         and through you always
         as if for wings to be or tell
         in any sky
         of you for you alone

Angelic -- This poem first appeared in Empyrean Literary Magazine.

Summertime

Fold up the table
         and chairs
Pack up to go
It’s time
The crowd is thinning out fast
         and the parking lot field is emptying

So unplug everything
Take down the flag
Zip the snacks back into bags
And make sure everything else is put away in boxes

Wave goodbye
Step over there to shake hands and mention next week
Start to leave and then
Look back to double check
         that nothing’s left behind

Soaked

Fame must be like driving 
        in a downpour
        or squinting through it --
        trying to see 
        what’s what at night
        with no one else around
        but loudly.

Or maybe being well known means in fact that
        wet shirts finally feel normal. 
Maybe in fact if you suddenly do get the chills 
        from all the headlines
        then those shivers will cause you to 
        simply say Well thank you.

Truth be told acclaim is probably like when creeks flood  
	your low ground
        and trees and dogs are just laughing 
        from dry above
        as you float by
        waving.

Yes, popularity must be like her basement smells --
        special and forever --
        long after your granny turns in her ticket
        for good.

Soaked -- The poem first appeared in Poetry Catalog. 

Bio — Founder of Poetry X Hunger: Bringing a World of Poets to the Anti-Hunger Cause, Larew has had poems appear in recent issues of West Trade Review, Contemporary American Voices and The Iowa Review. His most recent collection, Patchy Ways, was published in 2023 by CyberWit Press. www.HiramLarewPoetry.com and www.PoetryXHunger.com. A 2-minute video of a poem being magically translated into American Sign Language — Eric Epstein’s American Sign Language Interpretation of Larew’s Poem, “Magic” – YouTube