local_library White Space

by Paul Ilechko

Published in Issue No. 279 ~ August, 2020

White space is blocking

is an epic convulsion

is the climb of a ziggurat

with labyrinthine culture of curves

and diagonals

where ghost whispers quietly through hedgerows

 

white space is negative space

is precautionary

is impediment where smoke drift

of midnight is sexual is bird-sex is ghostly

while chains are heard rattling

from dungeon-scaled hooks

 

white space is ribcage

is the first born is the first bone

is exiled from metaphor

is submitted and pending

where ghost sleeps between tracks

under bridges of concrete

 

white space is breakfast

is grease-stained and blackened

is pan-seared and coated

with oil-cloth and coverage

as bandwidth decreases

into a ghost-channel echo of freedom

 

white space is reference

is the terror of academe

is monitored and conditioned

is the return of the doorway man

silvered by birch tree

and boarded with pine

 

white space is insurance

is finitely bordered

is daughter well adapted for the admission

of bias as the ache of repugnant stands

filling the entrance and still there is blocking

as existed for centuries

 

white space is sentiment

is the black shark of alcohol

is the ghost on the corner

who fades into pity as communion

is granted with equality

deferred for an additional fee.

 

account_box More About

Paul Ilechko is the author of the chapbooks “Bartok in Winter” (Flutter Press, 2018) and “Graph of Life” (Finishing Line Press, 2018). His work has appeared in a variety of journals, including West Trade Review, As It Ought To Be, Cathexis Northwest Press, Otoliths and Pithead Chapel. He lives with his partner in Lambertville, NJ.