Featured Poem From Mythic Delirium, Issue 23, Summer/Fall 2010 Cemetery Monologues Caitlyn Paxson This text will be replaced Read by Caitlyn Paxson

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I. The Gardener to the Jogger I am the gardener for the dead. Poppies for deep sleeping, Holly for safe keeping, sweet peas for last farewell. The bramble and the rose twine not for love, but me; I coax them with a wire, spoon bonemeal at their feet. I digress. I must tell you to turn away For a Panther dwells within, Skulks behind the tomb of the family Howl: Hetti, Sarah, Robert, dates obscured by lichen, May their peace be eternal, may angels guard them. I see you doubt me. He has crossed many borders Wandered up from the South and West, Where the Choctaw called him Brother Death And the hot sun burned his dark coat red. Here, the inky pigment has returned, blackened him to night. I must warn you. He sniffs out sweaty rubber soles, Microfiber blends, bouncing flesh, Muscled femurs, drags them into the marsh, Dines on the fat of the land: today, the fat is you. Each gasping breath you take May be your very last. II. The Panther to the Ghosts A good evening, Robert Howl, likewise to you ladies, Mrs. H., Miss Hetti; you’re looking very well. Your ectoplasmic glimmer is radiant tonight. Who is this, you ask? I believe his name was Joe. I call him dinner. His left thigh bone was perfection. No need to blush, Joe: It doesn’t show now you’re dead. These sweet ladies Will teach the ways of haunting before dusk and dawn, The little songs to hum, the long and wistful moans. I thank you, Ladies. I feel I owe him some small favors, now his flesh pumps my heart, Twines round my hollow bones instead of his own. I will not forget your kindness, Howls dear. If I can repay it, you need but sigh a word. III. The Ghost of Miss Hetti Howl to the Panther Panther, sleek as silken shirtwaists, Black as polished iron, silent as a fever, Softer by far than death; Come lie upon my lap, paws resting on my breast, Press your velvet shell of ear against my lips. I will ask you. You have seen the Gardener: I know you watch him close, long to caress his throat With sharp enameled fangs; I also long for him, for his warm living breath To mist upon the twin ropes of my rotten hair. I desire him. But he does not see my glances, Coy smiles do not tempt him, deaf to my laughter; When I lived ’twas like bells. Will you, Panther darling, will you bleed him empty, Will you rend him cheek to belly and make him mine? IV. The Crow to the Gardener I do like your Bright brass buttons, Your habit for forgetting: Remains of bread crust, Bag of salty crisp things Left upon the stone bench. I watch you from above. I would warn you. I have no beef With the Panther. In fact I kinda like him, But I like you better. The sun went down long past You know better than to stay To dig so inattentive! I’m talking to you. You don’t see him Where he’s stalking, You don’t hear him creeping, Heed him as he twitches. You should pay attention. Look up look up look up! No one ever listens. V. The Gardener’s Ghost to the Mourner The flowers will not bloom for me: The living of this place are No longer my concern, now I heed the dead alone. Their voices burst from earth, twine tight around my soul, hold me to this place with fierce unending love. I hear Hetti calling. Her smile beguiles me. She wraps me up in the memory Of her hair: it helps me to forget That now the roses grow from my marrow bones, Not from my tender care, not from my loving touch.

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“Cemetery Monologues” and accompanying illustration first appeared in Mythic Delirium, Issue 23, Summer/Fall 2010. “Cemetery Monologues” copyright © 2010 by Caitlyn Paxson; illustrations by Daniel Trout, copyright © 2010. Voice recording by Caitlyn Paxson, © 2010; all rights reserved. This poem and illustration may not be reproduced in any form without the author’s and artist’s express written permission. Previous classic and featured poems by: Kendall Evans and Samantha Henderson Susan Slaviero, Shweta Narayan, Amal El-Mohtar and Oussama El-Mohtar Jessica Paige Wick, Constance Cooper and Ann K. Schwader Amal El-Mohtar & Jessica Paige Wick, Lindsey Nair and F.J. Bergmann Holly Dworken Cooley and Ian Watson Amal El-Mohtar and Jessica Paige Wick David C. Kopaska-Merkel and Gene van Troyer Jeannine Hall Gailey and Charlee Jacob Theodora Goss and Sonya Taaffe Samantha Henderson and Ann K. Schwader Catherynne M. Valente and Anna Tambour Back to top