Becoming gods
“Dear me, I think I’m becoming a god.”
Emperor Vespasian just before
shitting himself to death
In Pompeii, you can see how
the people became gods,
empty spaces where life once was,
near perfect molds of the imperfect.
Last moments cast in ash,
men and women scrambling for safety
horrified at the idea of becoming
venerated memories in a city of shrines.
I was down the hall
when Mom was deified,
her life traded for prayers
calling for compassion
a series of empty dishes at holidays
and newly remembered hymns of motherly praise.
I was there when the room became vacant
when Dad became creation and destruction
an empty driver’s seat, an unsmoked cigarette.
He wasn’t ready yet but the ashes were falling
and the world needed stories.
Jonathan S Baker lives and works in Evansville, IN where the bouncers are villains, the Christmas Trees are fine, and there is a saloon at the bottom of the Ohio River. They are the author of several collections of poetry including Cock of the Walk (Laughing Ronin Press) Long Nights in Stoplight City (Between Shadows Press) Pressure (Two Key Customs) and Centaur (Dark Heart Press). They are also the co-host and organizer of Indiana’s longest running and most prestigious poetry series, Poetry Speaks.
