Up (for Frank Moore)

i've always wondered
and nobody's ever told me
if ourobos has his eyes open
when he swallows his tail

and how far down his body he goes
how far down he dares go
and the scales   how they feel in his mouth
how they taste

and how i don't know these other people in the subway car
as it begins its arch into the earth
past your house   ready to go back down again
i wave   in my moment of light
then down again   into my sports section
two more stops   two more stops to go

from Purgatorial (2004)