Holding Posture
Published in Poem Of The Day
History sits on a chair
in a room without windows.
Mornings it searches for a door,
afternoons it naps.
At the stroke of midnight,
it stretches its body and sighs.
It keeps time and loses time,
knows its place and doesn't know its place.
Sometimes it considers the chair a step,
sometimes it believes the chair is not there.
To corners it never looks the same.
Under a full moon it holds its own.
History sits on a chair
in a room above our houses.
About this poem
"This short poem was conceived in Lisbon, [Portugal,] where the light never rests on its laurels. It was put to bed a few years later in New York City, where the light crowds out the stars."
-Howard Altmann
About Howard Altmann
Howard Altmann is the author of "In This House" (Turtle Point Press, 2010). He lives in New York City.
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The Academy of American Poets is a nonprofit, mission-driven organization, whose aim is to make poetry available to a wider audience.
(c) 2014 Howard Altmann. Originally published by the Academy of American Poets, www.poets.org. Distributed by King Features Syndicate
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