Troy
By Andrew Demcak
Warriors at Troy, (Drinking Cup), 6th C. BCE. British Museum, London. Photo credit: Erich Lessing / Art Resource, NY
That place, just a myth, a thread into rope.
What restraint and fear among the broken
militia? Or the hollow of Helen’s
bed that would swallow you up like Scylla?
Were the laden sounds of enemy boats
coasting: military intelligence?
Didn’t some God speak, fighting back his hair,
about a kidnapping avenged, or
the nature of human-rights? Lifting this
from bric-a-brac: a round belt buckle in
the attic from some island store, a horse
found, made from love, or a prospect of war?
Andrew Demcak received his M.F.A. in creative writing from Saint Mary’s College in 1997. His new book of poetry, Catching Tigers in Red Weather, won Three Candles Press’ 2007 Open Book Award. His work has been published in Pearl, MiPoesias, Juked!, Poetry Midwest, Plainsongs, The Potomac Review, The Chiron Review, The Wisconsin Review and elsewhere.