by Elise Rothenhoefer
The Fall
I reread your letter and your voice
Dives into my ears like shooting stars.
Words frozen, punctuation marks like
Walls of a citadel.
The historic walled city where
You sketched me in a centuries-old
Cathedral. I held the rosary we’d made
From old broadsheet newspapers.
The sweatier I got, the more
The beads around my wrist warped.
All statues without heartbeats
Staring at you. All motionless,
Rendered livelier by their staring.
More than three hundred summers ago,
Newton stared and witnessed
A heart fall out of the blue.
An aged brick, separated.
A bead detached. You’d never age
Another year older. Everywhere, the devout
Bending knees to the ground, saying prayers,
Breathing without you. And I, too, living,
Praying, motionless to adore the voice
The way I did the woman, spaces
Like dust from space.
Jessie Raymundo teaches composition and literature at PAREF Southridge School. He is currently a graduate student in the Department of Literature at De La Salle University-Manila. His poetry has appeared in a few publications in print and online. He lives in a small city in the Philippines with his two cats.
Elise Rothenhoefer is a visual artist, writer, animal lover, and social justice advocate. She manages a graphic design business, Magic Bean Designs. Elise lives in the wilds of Southern Florida with her husband, 3 children, 4 cats, 3 hermit crabs, 2 dogs, 2 guinea pigs, 1 pig and 1 tortoise.