Cinnamon Shop

[constantine]

Welcome my friend to the Cinnamon Shop
emporium of exotica and botanicals,
rare and profound.
essential oils and distillations, spices
kaleidoscopic in aroma and effect -
a synesthesia of the senses,
aisle after aisle, a labyrinth of shelves
crammed and stacked, pyramids of cans
oceans of bottles, labels
affixed with Turkish mastic, encoded
in obscure script and formulae:
cuneiform and hieroglyph
linear A and B, and dialects - dead or dying,
Helvetian, Tocharian, and Pict;
petrified eggs from species encrusted and extinguished
the dodo and archaeopteryx
and other sturdier breeds, alive, prospering
in the nests and aeries of the third floor,
open to the heavens, winds perambulating,
riding the inversions and currents, the red hawk -
peregrines of the Portuguese, emperor penguins
waddling in open walk-in freezalls,
pandemonium reigns upon the pampas
and spanish plains - quixotic windmills
misplaced and poorly designed by journeymen
unaccustomed to the trades they ply
and, in the backroom,
behind and beyond the mundanities of our time
sits granddad, caretaker of the embryonic -
thriving in placenta tanks and maturation vats.
do not worry - please! don't be offended
granddad is a master from the old school,
well-disciplined and exacting;
they could not be in finer hands, though
gnarled and arthritic - I ask you:
is it really his fault?
compassion and moderation are in order...
all sales are final - buyer beware- signs are posted

in memory of Bruno Schulz

[westcoast]

a fitting tribute it is your easy, inexorable flow swept me along with many delights of language enjoyed.

~westcoast