Arrival

southbound by plane
arriving in Guadalajara
in the dark, fatigued
trying to read
during a long wait
a tale of wandering
restlessness and exile
cow skulls lodged
in the orange mud
of a dried up lake
and a woman walks by
with waist-length hair
and snake-skin boots
the horizon glows
and soon a gathering
into the sky again
time passes, clouds pass
we land before noon
metropolis in a lake bed
warnings in the terminal
beware of unofficial taxis
and then to the metro
an old train, underground
seats full, windows open
glass vandalized
to the station, with a
map drawn on a scrap
of brown paper bag
a line points west
through a land
of pedal carts
piled with bundles
of bursting, whimsical color
and then on to find
a generous doorman
reading a book about
class warfare
who has the keys
the elevator ascends
a door opens
to high ceilings
glass-block windows
and red cushions
one wall is blue
on another, a portrait
of a writer, sub-command
of southern rebellion
nearly a palace!
flooded with sunlight
a church bell rings at sunset
an organ begins at dusk
as water drips
and resonates
like a metronome

Mexico City, 2019