Perfect Lake of Water

You rage against me
because I will not obey you, you
who have never been worthy
of obedience. I have never asked
for your obedience. Whether you
give it to me or not makes no
difference to me. I continue
and have always been.
I am more than a reflection
of your fears. I am constant—light
and hunger and regret. These are the hours
in which you clock your habits.
I reflect nothing that you do not
need to see. What you request
is always the same—a sentimental habit
that leaves you no clearer to make a difference.
You need interruption, so I storm. You need
inspiration, so I swelter. I refuse romantic
notions of strength and love. What do you know
about honor? I am full of the lost
and the hopeless—I tend to their cold desires.
I am heavy from their unfinished business. Their regret
becomes mine as I nurse the shoreline. Never ending, imagine ever ending.

Copyright © 2005 Melanie Figg All rights reserved
from Saranac Review
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission