Poem of the Week

For the Man on His Knees at The Eagle

Francisco Márquez

You take in two,
then four, turning
to every direction,

revealed by
the light when
it hits you,

hand stiff
at the back
of your neck,

a finger pries
your mouth
open: I know

how far we go
for pleasure, I see
a memory

of love flying
from your eyes!
What once

burned inside
me, inside you
prospering.

Francisco Márquez is a poet from Maracaibo, Venezuela, born in Miami, Florida. A graduate of the MFA program at NYU, his work appears in The Brooklyn Rail, Narrative, and The Common, among other publications. He has received support from Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Tin House, The Poetry Project, and the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. He is the Assistant Web Editor at Poets & Writers and lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Originally published:
June 23, 2021

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