The family’s meeting soon. Last year,
This air was entering some lungs
That are no more in use, and we
Were shopping at a store that’s
Closed its doors.

That’s as may be: once, these
Were woods, before that, maybe
Swamp. We can recall ‘before’;
Just not the ‘before’ before ‘before’.
But our perspective
Typically shows where we
Like our lines to be.

The frame decides what’s
In the paintng, but doesnt tell
You why the artist painted
The desolation of a soul
That finds itself at one with
Empty parking lots