Murales

I

The calmly scorching sun, w’thout rage,
burns bricks ‘n paves to blazing!
Baked into them, the fire’s flames
fallrise streetways; airsettle.

Arteries to the avenues!
Nervemesh, mazefully mapping
routes firm-rooting th’broad ‘n tall –
streets backbehind ‘n roads rag-running.

Tracking colour; questing murals told!
Th’bells tell it’s ten, church chantly backing,
as we melt beside the scorched, brown grass
pecked at by pigeons.

Into the wild, winding nowhereabouts,
descending from the shade tree,
we encounter th’counterpoint
to the slicker, litter-laden lavish.

Here the balconies lean, laundry-packed,
with th’denizens of deep Palermo posed
in poise, painting chat upon the canvas air
above/below/between/about them!

Wrong turns; white paint; strange looks;
dogs doze; guys drive; trucks pass;
men sit; women sit; chairs, empty, chill;
concrete walls crack curve stretch straight.

Parked cars, bump-battered, sleep beneath
wrapped wires ‘n a satellite dish.
We come to the stone stacked on th’corrugation
of the iron sheets oxidising.

Glue-pastely grasping, faded menu-paper
profiles ancient ice-cream options ‘cross
the bottom of a derelict door whose wood,
spray-painted, knots ‘n gnarls.

Still yet no colour-burst! This fabled find
of musemajestic muralment unfound!
Which way? Abandon? Quest-sweat streamrivers!
A look a-last behind us…

II

Wonderfully waterclear!
Cool, aquid bluebright
beckoning you in;
fish frolically pointing
b’yond the steps
that stone-step,
wonkyslippy,
down!

A tunnel,
taking us to th’murals,
moves with floric white in
sky ‘n river blue
that becomes bolder
‘til it bursts
into a daylight dreamscape
singing
herons, palms, ‘n lions
twirly-styled with flower petals
star-suspended in the wallpaint
panoramic,
channelling us
riverfallward!

Poles painted
t’match the walls
to match the sea
to match the sky
to match the
lush, variegated k’leidoscope
of azure-lapis strewn!

Oasid
lays the muraled path.
Our treasure found, we stroll.
In a kilned-ceramic pot,
a street cat naps.