Van Stanley

Signs for Travelers

[Jean Follain imitation poem assignment]

Travelers from great spaces:
when you see the ducks hung, inverted
dry & bronze, like the gaggles of sun-hags
on Miami Beach, the roast pig
split among steel trays flagging steam
through a peek in the window glass
& when moreover you see
near a cart vending pickled jellyfish
a beggar weaving bamboo strips into conic
wicker pea-shooters
& as you inhale to fire the green ammunition
& whiff the stench of gasoline
exhaust & wet city trash in the air, like a
French Quarter alley
by these signs you will know not
to worry, if you have forgotten Saigon
she is still standing.