ATLANTIS
Karen Hildebrand |
 |
They say downtown Manhattan will be underwater.
They say they'll relocate coastal cities inland,
As if the bedrock of our fickle hearts
Can simply shift a few degrees. Will they
Load San Francisco's Painted Ladies
On a flatbed? Drive them to Orinda?
What of Sutro Tower? Its ghostship forever
Unanchored. Where will we go when the waters rise?
My tree house cottage swollen with longing,
Farley's no longer open at six around the corner?
Where will we go when the canals of Venice
Float the West Village? Retired firemen
Pole by my fourth floor window in gondolas,
Their shoe polish hair, waving triceps,
As we begin to shrink, water
Licking briny brickwork. I suppose
I could lay a plank from my landing to the next,
Build a Bridge of Sighs to Jack's
Now relocated up three flights,
Get my fair trade, shade-grown beans, to go.
CC