Vigil

A man is preserved in the worst
Possible ways: division of the elements
When the hands are closed.

The scent is always the first to go,
Folded twice like a white shirt
Ghost under the nose. The sound

Is consequential—extracted—shut
Within a casket, the diminutive
Silhouette forced upon

Until it blurs. A void happens as
A necessary digression, for another week or so.
This is to ensure the keeping

Of the soul, in durable setting,
Until it is asked for
Again
Another morning.

Dale Chou
2013-03-31