2012
POETRY OPEN
First Place
$1,000 Award
RENGA FOR AN ABSENT LOVER
by Sheryl Mebane
Where are you lover,
hot skin, soft lips, giving and
taking until I
forget the cold rain outside?
Have I frightened you away?
Your tears like acid,
your silence, like a caul, and
yet you call to me.
You move me in your stillness.
You sing strongest in whispers.
Teacher, lover, man
of deep mystery, do you
know you shine? I fear
that you have nothing to say.
Your silence overwhelms me.
Breath and base instincts
revealed, you leave me naked
to your knowing, which
I welcome. Come to me. Come
into my arms. Say nothing.
______________________________
Sheryl Mebane earned a minor in creative writing at UNC-Chapel Hill. She was awarded a fellowship by Pearl Street Publishing, which published her jazz novel Lady Bird. Her drumming and compositions have been recorded on three jazz CDs. She has a doctorate in physical chemistry, has taught green chemistry and works as a science translator.
March 2012