Three poems by Luis Cuauhtemoc Berriozabal

Three poems
by Luis Cuauhtemoc Berriozabal

DESIRES

I desire to disappear.
I do not desire death.
I have quarrels with life.

Death gives me a great kiss.
When my dream ends I feel
a great relief. I have

no desires for self-
destruction. I desire
to be kind to my heart.

I want to depart; spend my
time in solitude.
The universe can beat

its drum without plunging
its dagger inside me.
My desires change day to day.

====================

IN THE DESERT

With monotonous speech
the dying bird
sings a tired song
that no one will hear.
It has come to rest
thirsty for water in the desert.

The brown mountains on fire
not far away
seem like mirages
to the dying bird.
It merely looks as
Death wanders blindly in the desert.

The eyes of the dying
bird see visions
of something that
helps it come to grasp
with the end of life.
It leaves its last song in the desert.

++++++++++++++++++++

BRING OUT THE DEAD

When I could not
play dominos
I wrote every book.

Voices do not
talk to me, but
I could see through doors.

I lived in a
holding tank and
slept on a cold bench.

I liked it there
because I could
sing as loud as crows.

I was born in
the dinosaur
age. My job is to

pour acid down
storm drains. I bring
out the dead. I go

from land to
land, from mountain
to mountain, from sea

to sea. I am
the sun, moon, and
the devil in hell

Author bio:

Luis Cuauhtemoc Berriozabal has a new chapbook. It is called Overcome. It is a collaborated effort with photographer, Cynthia Etheridge. The publisher is Kendra Steiner Editions.