Obituary for Mary Jane McIlroy, July 1979

the birds are dancing on Mary Jane’s roof again
she perceives they are doing a Charleston
and wishes they would turn off the Victrola
 
outside the summer heat has faded the blue
from the sky and is melting the window pane
Mary Jane watches it drip and puddle on the sill
 
with translucent hand she straightens her lace collar,
sputters a dry cough and then
wishes aloud for a glass of ice water
 
later, after the sky has been painted blue again
(but not the same color of blue, they never quite
match the former hue, she notes)
 
she realizes the pane has disappeared altogether
with a deep sigh she closes her eyes, wills
herself aloft and flies out the window
 
 
first published Poetry Quarterly, 2014