I watch a scorpion feed on dusty moths
trapped in a ceiling light… before I douse the sight;
before I pillow down…I follow capture as arachnid
silhouette flips ‘round a shallow globe
I dream scorpions tango in my mind
there in the moonlight of dim consciousness where
he…she…they… tangle claw to claw to sway push;
they ripple mouthings…leg wrap twist and drag
to swing spin…tilt rock…glide swirl to silent rhythm
of relentless no enchantment loveless mating
through a night dark…restless…through intimations
of an ego sting implied there in the edges of my sleep
I awake to fading constellations….somewhere Scorpio
slips and drips though space…its constellation silhouette
implying shape to nothingness
some ancient entomologist drew it on the universe…
some inventive charter for celestial navigation
I shall erase the sky
I shall take my chances against now
I shall embrace my history in the moment
I shall tango with my love
Bonnie Marshall
Artwork by Man Ray
Proem... 
Drips and slips
Smiles…
As rich and deep as always…..my favorite poet!
Oh, this is good to hear, Nancy…dear reader.
what Philip Whalen would have called a “graph of consciousness”: how the mind navigates the experience it is having
Insightful, Mark. Seems especially appropriate with art, too. Thank you for the thinking dear reader.
The wind up to your last stanza and then the last stanza itself — beautiful.
I’m so pleased you found this in it, Jenifer, Very meaningful for me. Smiles…
I’m just sitting here chuckling and speechless…. you do amaze me!
Smiles…Jana!
first, it’s good to see another of your poems. this is worth the wait. it’s ambitious, spiraling from insects all the way out to a constellation and then back to the personal courage of “I shall tango with my love.” my favorite stanza is the second because of how beautifully you suggest both the tango of scorpions and of humans.
Your comments are important to me, and I lean from them. Your insight inspires me.