With Skulls and Anchors Tattooed on Their Shoulders, the Horses Gather
Kike comes from keikl,
that's Yiddish for circle ,
My step-sister's husband said
his words whipped the air
like smoke from a candle
We talked words, words like whiskey and paddy
between the passing and sipping of tequila
they'd flown here to California from Philadelphia
she a failed rock star, he a painter
with skulls and anchors tattooed on their shoulders,
the horses gathered beneath our breath of dust,
hoofing, and snorting into the ground, our saddles of blood,
explaining the obscure origin of the curse word,
Fuck , which binds the heard, and keeps the pedigree clean
On Ellis Island, the Jews,
and the Germans,
and the Russians (them Russians)
signed their names with a symbol:
a circle stood for the Star of David,
while the X was a cross for the Christians
Today they'd be hugs and kisses
The origin of words - the place from which they came
upon which they birthed into a million meanings
from a million lips kissing and sailing across country
into the bloom of new breath and debauchery
my stepsister - her husband
she, a Mexican - Italian - American
he, an Irish - American
They, a miserable - happy couple
The hyphen is a saddle
The horses have gathered,
and my throat is burning
they snort and kick,
the smoke is turning,
the dirt flicks from the ground
into clouds of gray, and yet
we embrace and say,
It was good to see you.
Elizabeth Dosta
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